ANTWERP v PLZEN
Europa League
Thursday 8th August 2019
Kickoff: 1830hrs
Pick: Both teams to score
Bookmaker: Unibet
Odds: 1.93 (odds taken at 01:56 GMT, 08 August 2019)
 |
1 | X | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.16 | 3.15 | 3.66 |
* (Betting Odds were taken from 22Bet on August 08, 2019 at 01:56)
The 1st legs of the 3rd qualifying round of the Europa League continue on Thursday night and our next preview features an encounter between Belgian club, Antwerp and Czech Republic outfit, Plzen, as the betting tips continue at the Bosuilstadion.
Antwerp Prediction – Can Antwerp continue early form?
It’s been a long road to this 3rd qualifying round tie in the Europa League for Thursday night’s hosts, Royal Antwerp as they prepare for this 1st leg.
The Belgian hosts made the most of their opportunities throughout last season as they finished the regular season in 6th place in the First Division A.
This creditable finish earned Antwerp a place in the Championship Round in the second phase of the Belgian top flight season.
A 4th place finish in the Championship Round saw them qualify for the Europa League play-offs where they beat Sporting Charleroi in the final to qualify for the competition this term.
Since that triumphant 3-2 win in the play-off final, Antwerp have put together a 7-match unbeaten run ahead of this important 1st leg clash.
This solid sequence of results include recent back-to-back wins in the First Division A over Eupen 4-1 away and a 4-1 home win against Waasland-Beveren.
Antwerp are also unbeaten in their last 5 matches on home turf at their Bosuilstadion while 9 of their last 14 on home soil have seen both teams score.
Plzen Prediction – Can Plzen keep solid form going?
The Czech Republic outfit have suffered just 1 defeat out of their last 8 matches in all competitions which gives them a decent chance on this 1st leg.
Their only defeat during this impressive 8-game sequence was a Champions League tie against Olympiakos where they suffered a 4-0 defeat away from home.
This emphatic loss saw Plzen crash out of the qualifying rounds of the Champions League but they have a second bite of the European cherry in this tie against Antwerp.
Results have otherwise been positive for the visitors as they’ve picked up Czech Liga wins against Sigma Olomouc, Slovan Liberec and Karvina.
With just 2 defeats out of their last 9 away matches overall in all competitions, Plzen are a tough proposition for Antwerp in this 1st leg in Belgium.
However, when we look at Plzen’s previous results away from home in the Europa League, the visitors have won just 1 of their last 13 away ties.
This is a very poor record indeed and one that prevents us from backing Plzen for the away win here in this opening leg.
They do possess something that Antwerp don’t though, and that’s previous experience in this Europa League competition which may just be the difference here.
Key-Facts – Antwerp v Plzen
- 9 of Antwerp’s last 14 on home soil have seen both teams score
- Plzen have lost just 2 out of their last 9 away matches overall in all competitions
- This is Antwerp’s first ever appearance in the Europa League
Betting Tips Verdict
With this being Antwerp’s first match in the Europa League combined with Plzen’s poor away record in this competition, we could see both teams score here.
