Anderlecht vs APOEL Nicosia
UEFA Europa League – Round of 16, Second Leg
Date: Thursday, 16th March 2017
Kick off at 20:05 UK/ 21:05 CET
Venue: Stade Constant Vanden Stock.
Anderlecht played brilliantly in Nicosia securing a very important win in order to advance into quarter-finals. The Belgians are currently in solid form in both Jupiler League and UEFA competition, especially in Europa League home matches as they won four out of last five matches, whilst managing to score 16 goals. Anderlecht holds solid record against teams from Cyprus, so far they won six games, drew two and lost one; in Belgium, they have the perfect record as they won four out of four games against Cypriot opposition. Since winning the UEFA Cup back in 1983 and losing the 1984 final, Anderlecht weren’t able to reach beyond the last 8 in this competition.
APOEL was defeated in Nicosia after 33 matches – their insane home run was ended mostly due to the absence of their top scorer. They have almost 3000 kilometers to travel and it’s going to be very difficult for the Cypriot side to overcome the deficit from the first leg, especially as their record against Belgian sides is not bright. They never won against Belgian side, while they only managed to draw one game with six defeats; their record in Belgium is D1 L2, including the 10-1 defeat against Lierse back in 1969. APOEL are on a three-game losing streak in away games, but they managed to find the net in each of four away matches in Europa League this season. Their biggest UEFA achievement was back in 2011/12 when they reached Champions League quarter-finals, when they were knocked out by Real Madrid.
Anderlecht vs APOEL: Head to head
Anderlecht secured a huge advantage by beating APOEL 0-1 in Nicosia in the first leg.
The Belgians gained advantage in the tie thanks to a goal from Nicolae Stanciu who made the difference just before the half-hour-mark.
Anderlecht vs APOEL: Prediction
Anderlecht have been superb on the home court so far in the season and we can easily see them backing up the success from Nicosia.
You can have the home win bet at 11/20 odds, while we also see a decent value in Anderlecht to score two goals or more at the odds of 4/6. The hosts bagged two or more goals in six of their last seven games at Stade Constant Vanden Stock.
Anderlecht vs APOEL: Bet Tips
The main bet is home win at 11/20.
You can alternatively choose Anderlecht Over 1.5 team goals at 4/6.
