Our prediction for this Belgium Pro League match:
All eyes will be on Lotto Park when Anderlecht and Standard Liege face each other in the Jupiler League derby on Sunday afternoon. Following back-to-back wins over Oostende and St.Truiden, Anderlecht shared the spoils with Kortrijk at the weekend, with the team climbing to 9th place in the standings. Both Delcroix and Kana are major doubts, and the duo will be assessed ahead of the kick-off.
The Red Devils, on the other hand, produced one of their best performances of the season in a 4-2 win over St. Gilloise, and given their attacking potential, we believe that there is a big value in betting on over 2.5 goals. Gilles Dewaele remains on the sidelines with a long-term injury, while fellow defender Nathan Ngoy faces race against the clock to be fit for the match. In the first half of the season Standard Liege rolled over Anderlecht 5-0.
Highlighted Player (Jan Vertonghen):
After spending four years at Ajax, in 2006 Jan Vertonghen signed a loan deal with RKC Waalwijk. The left-footed defender spent one season at Mandemakers Stadion and he returned to Ajax for the 2007/2008 season. The highly rated footballer, who is capable of playing as both centre back and left back, signed a deal with Tottenham Hotspur on 8 July, 2012 and he has been playing for the Premier League outfit ever since.
The Belgian defender scored four goals for the Spurs in the 2012/2013 Premier League season and he made 34 league appearances for the White Hart Lane outfit back then. In the 2015/2016 season Jan Vertonghen and his teammates were producing brilliant displays with Tottenham, but the Spurs eventually finished the campaign in third place in the standings.
Speaking of his international career, Vertonghen made it to both World Cup (2014) and Euro (2016) quarter-finals with the Belgian national team. Jan was born on 24 April, 1987 and his shirt number is 5.
Highlighted Team (St Liege):
Standard are a Belgian football club based in Liege. The club was founded back in 1898 and 11 years later they joined Belgian First League. Les Rouches (the Reds) immediately dropped to the lower leagues, but in 1921 they returned to the Belgian top flight. Standard won their first Belgian League trophy in 1958, but you should have in mind that they were level on points with second-placed Royal Antwerp.
In 2009 the Reds clinched their tenth domestic title, beating Anderlecht in the title game. Talented midfielder Axel Witsel scored the winner for Standard in the 1-0 triumph over their bitter rivals. Standard play their home games at Stade Maurice Dufrasne, the venue that was opened in 1909. The capacity of the stadium is 30 023.
Maurice Dufrasne was the club’s chairman from 1909 until 1931. Speaking of the club’s European success, Standard participated in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup final in 1982, losing to La Liga giants Barcelona in the title game.