Our prediction for this Belgium Pro League match:
Standard Liege and St Gilloise face each other at Stade Maurice Dufrasne in the opening match of round 2. The Red Devils aim to recover from a 1-0 loss to St Truiden and they are likely to fight tooth and nail against the title contenders. Defender Gilles Dewaele is a major doubt and he will be assessed ahead of the kick-off, while all Dodeigne, Mundle, and Dragus are pushing for a start.
The visitors, on the other hand, made a promising start to the new Jupiler League campaign, with the team beating Belgian powerhouse Anderlecht 2-0 on home soil. St Gilloise are more of a team than Standard Liege and given their attacking potential, away win should be considered. With no fresh injury worries to report, Alexander Blessin is unlikely to make changes to the team that defeated the capital club in the opening match of the season.
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.