Our prediction for this Belgium Pro League match:
Stade Maurice Dufrasne will host Saturday’s football game between Standard Liege and Gent, the two teams who are eyeing a spot in the Conference League playoffs. The Red Devils head into the match following a goalless draw with Cercle Brugge. Gilles Dewaele remains on the sidelines with an ACL injury, while fellow defender Nathan Ngoy faces race against the clock to be fit for the clash.
Gent, on the other hand, aim to build on a 3-1 win over Westerlo. Since the visitors looked sharp in front of goal in the last league fixture, away triumph should be considered. It has to be noted that Gent are undefeated in the previous six meetings with Standard Liege in all competitions. Keep in mind, though, that all Jens Petter Hauge, Nurio Fortuna, and Laurent Depoitre are out of contention through injuries.
Highlighted Player (Mehdi Carcela-González):
Despite being born in Liege, Belgium on July 1, 1989, Mehdi Carcela represents Morocco on the international stage. Carcela initially chose to play for his country of birth Belgium, taking part in two friendlies with the Red Devils, but in February 2011 he made his debut with Morocco.
He represented Morocco at the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals in Russia, but the African side failed to make it to the knockout stages of the showpiece tournament. Speaking of his club career, Mehdi Carcela played for the likes of Standard Liege, Anzhi, Benfica, Granada and Olympiakos (on loan). He currently plays for Standard Liege on loan from Granada.
Mehdi Carcela’s main position is right winger, but he is capable of playing as both attacking midfielder and left winger as well. In the 2008/2009 season the Morocco international won the Belgian Pro League with Standard and seven seasons later he repeated the success with Benfica as the Eagles won Primeira Liga. His preferred foot is left.
Highlighted Team (Gent):
Gent are a Belgian football club that plays their home games at Ghelamco Arena. The venue has been the club’s home ground since 2013 and the capacity of the stadium is 20 000. De Buffalo’s participate in the Belgian Pro League and they clinched their first domestic trophy in the 2014/2015 season.
Gent finished the regular part of the season in second place in the standings, but they eventually climbed to the top position in the table in the play-off. The club won their third Belgian Cup trophy in 2010 and it has to be noted that they defeated Club Brugge in the Belgian Super Cup in 2015. Laurent Depoitre scored the winner for Gent three minutes before the final whistle.
A number of top-class players were part of the team in the past and the likes of Victor Fernandez, Johan Boskamp, Bob Peeters, Trond Sollied and Michel Preud’homme are some of notable footballers who played for Gent in the past.