Peter Closes Training as ADO Prepares for Eredivisie Home Match

Peter will lead ADO into their first Eredivisie home match in five years this weekend, but the build-up has been dominated by anger rather than anticipation.

The head coach has shut the doors on open training after team information from a session was posted online almost immediately. For him, that crossed a line.

“I don't know who it was, but in any case someone, or a few people, posted information online immediately,” he told Dutch outlet Algemeen Dagblad. “That makes keeping training sessions open completely pointless for us.”

The frustration is clear. ADO want to remain a club where fans can watch the team prepare during the week, feel close to the players, sense the tactical work from the touchline. But once lineups and plans start circulating on social media before a ball is kicked, the coach believes the risk outweighs the romance.

“I have no idea if this happened last year as well, but this time I knew it was posted online straight away,” he explained. “We want everyone to be able to come and watch training, but that information has to stay inside the complex. That didn't happen, so we have to close the doors.”

The decision is a hard stop. Tactical integrity first, sentiment second.

Focus back on the pitch

Once the leak row is parked, the football itself takes centre stage again. A sold-out crowd will pack in on Sunday afternoon as ADO welcome FC Groningen on matchday two of the 2026-27 Eredivisie season, chasing their first points of the campaign.

Peter expects a proper contest rather than a chess match.

“I don't expect any surprises and I'm hoping for an open game played at high intensity by both teams,” he said, setting the tone for what he wants from his players and from the spectacle.

ADO need a response. Their return to the top flight began with a 2-0 defeat away to AZ, undone by second-half goals from Ro-Zangelo Daal and Calvin Stengs. The scoreline underlined the gap that still exists, but also sharpened the urgency heading into this homecoming.

Groningen arrive with momentum. They edged past FC Utrecht in their curtain-raiser and look like a side carrying confidence into the new season. For a newly returned ADO still searching for rhythm, it is a stern early test.

Team news and selection calls

Peter’s options are not yet at full strength.

• Jalen Hawkins remains sidelined with a hamstring problem, while Cameron Peupion is still a long-term absentee after knee surgery. Both miss out, trimming the attacking and creative choices available.
• There is better news in goal. Niclas Thiede has returned to full training following an ankle injury and is back in the frame, offering stability and experience in a key position just as the club steps back into the glare of Eredivisie home football.
• Othniel Raterink, on loan from Cagliari, is another potential boost. The forward is still building match fitness, so he is expected to start on the bench, but he could be unleashed as an impact option if the game opens up as Peter anticipates.

So ADO head into a landmark afternoon with closed training sessions, a sold-out stadium and a demanding opponent. The tactics will now stay behind locked doors. What unfolds on the pitch will show whether that protection pays off in points.