SM
Man City vs. Club Brugge: 13 hrs 59 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data
A
Conference League | Quarter-Finals | 1st Leg
Apr 13, 2023 at 8pm UK
Lotto Park
AA

Anderlecht
2 - 0
AZ

Murillo (22'), Ashimeru (70')
Refaelov (73')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Beukema (31'), Pavlidis (42'), Reijnders (79')

Preview: Anderlecht vs. AZ Alkmaar - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Anderlecht vs. AZ Alkmaar - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Thursday's Europa Conference League clash between Anderlecht and AZ Alkmaar, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Sports Mole

Belgian side Anderlecht welcome Dutch outfit AZ Alkmaar to the Lotto Park on Thursday as the Europa Conference League quarter-finals get underway.

Anderlecht overcame Villarreal in the previous round, while AZ Alkmaar dispatched Lazio to book their place in the last eight.


Match preview

It would not be unfair to say that Anderlecht have experienced a turbulent Europa Conference League campaign up to now, recording four wins, three draws and three losses since the start of the competition.

After taking eight points from a possible 18 during the group stage – finishing 10 points behind West Ham United in Group B – Brian Riemer's side required penalties to get past Ludogorets Razgrad in the first knockout round.

Given their inconsistency in Europe, Anderlecht were not expected to overcome Villarreal in the last 16, but the Belgians managed to hold the Spaniards to a 1-1 draw in the first leg before clinching a famous 1-0 victory at El Madrigal.

Thanks to those results, RSCA head into Thursday's clash on a six-game unbeaten run across all competitions, having picked up four wins and two draws since their last loss while keeping a clean sheet in each of their previous five outings.

Having suffered a solitary defeat in their last 10 matches – losing just two of their previous 15 encounters in all competitions – Anderlecht will be confident of notching a first-leg advantage on home soil.

Meanwhile, AZ Alkmaar had to come through three qualifying rounds to reach the Europa Conference League, dispatching Tuzla City, Dundee United and Gil Vicente to punch their ticket to the competition proper.

The Cheeseheads ended up making light work of their group-stage opponents, however, finishing five points clear at the top of Group E after winning five of their six matches to earn a direct route to the round of 16.

AZ headed into their last-16 clash with Lazio as underdogs, but they managed to claim a couple of 2-1 victories over the Italian club, coming from behind in both games while showing off their fighting spirit.

That said, Pascal Jansen's side have failed to taste victory since overcoming Lazio, taking one point from a possible nine to leave them fourth in the Eredivisie table – five points shy of the European places and 13 points behind table-topping Feyenoord.

AZ enjoyed an eight-game unbeaten run between November and February before racking up five straight wins across February and March, but Jansen's men have endured a noticeable drop-off in recent weeks.

Anderlecht Europa Conference League form:


Anderlecht form (all competitions):


AZ Alkmaar Europa Conference League form:


AZ Alkmaar form (all competitions):



Team News

Anderlecht will be without Yari Verschaeren for the remainder of the campaign after the 21-year-old playmaker sustained an ACL tear last month, while Adrien Trebel is also out injured.

Verschaeren bagged two goals and two assists in the Europa Conference League before getting injured, so Islam Slimani – who has scored seven goals in 12 games since arriving in January – must continue to find the back of the net.

At the opposite end of the pitch, goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen will aim to keep a sixth successive clean sheet on Thursday, with the help of veteran centre-back Jan Vertonghen.

AZ Alkmaar look set to be without Jesper Karlsson for the first leg after the Swedish forward missed last weekend's 1-0 defeat to Sparta Rotterdam due to a muscle injury.

There are also question marks over the fitness of Maxim Dekker, Bruno Martins Indi, Sem Westerveld and Dani de Wit, who have all missed recent matches through injury.

Greek striker Vangelis Pavlidis has chalked up 19 goals and 10 assists this season and scored in both games against Lazio, while versatile Danish forward Jens Odgaard has contributed 11 goals and five assists.

Anderlecht possible starting lineup:
Verbruggen; Murillo, Debast, Vertonghen, N'Daiye; Ashimeru, Diawara, Arnstad; Dreyer, Slimani, Amuzu

AZ Alkmaar possible starting lineup:
Ryan; Sugawara, Beukema, Hatzidiakos, Kerkez; Reijnders, Clasie; Odgaard, Mijnans, Mihailovic; Pavlidis


We say: Anderlecht 1-0 AZ Alkmaar

While AZ Alkmaar have failed to win any of their last three games, Anderlecht have won four of their previous five, keeping five clean sheets in the process.

With that in mind, we expect the hosts to achieve another shutout victory on Thursday, securing an important first-leg advantage to boot.



For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.




body check tags ::

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


amp_article__511089 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2024-06-07 08:30:57:
html db last update - 2024-06-07 08:30:57 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html
Read more!
Share this article now:


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Recommended Next on SM
West Ham to face Gent in Europa Conference League quarter-finals
Signing number six? How close are Man City to recruiting Juve's Cambiaso?
Which Championship club have won the race to sign Villa starlet Barry?
Preview: Anderlecht vs. Hoffenheim - prediction, team news, lineups
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Genk23163446291751
2Club BruggeBrugge23146352262648
3Union SGUnion SG231010335191640
4Anderlecht23116642222039
5Royal AntwerpAntwerp23107641251637
6Standard Liege239771622-634
7GentGent238963125633
8CharleroiCharleroi2385102427-329
9Dender237792735-828
10Cercle BruggeCercle Brugge237792433-928
11MechelenMechelen2376103733427
12Leuven2351171924-526
13Westerlo2365123841-323
14Sint-Truiden2358102844-1623
15KortrijkKortrijk2354141843-2519
16Beerschot WilrijkBeerschot VA2327142151-3013
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .