Our prediction for this Champions League match:
Stade Bollaert-Delelis will host Tuesday’s Champions League game between Lens and Sevilla, the two teams who are vying for a sport in the Europa League knockout stages. Los Sevillanos face a must-win situation in the decider, but they do not seem to be at their sharpest ahead of the trip to France. As Diego Alonso’s men failed to impress in a 1-0 loss to Mallorca at the weekend, away win should not be considered. All Jesus Navas, Fernando, Marcos Acuna, Mariano Diaz, Loic Bade, Suso, and Erik Lamela are sidelined with injuries, while Lucas Ocampos is banned for the match.
Lens, on the other hand, aim to recover from a heavy 6-0 loss to Arsenal. As Sevilla are likely to adopt an attack-oriented approach in Tuesday’s clash, we predict that the hosts are going to seal the victory on the break. Florian Sotoca is back from suspension, while all Deiver Machado, Ayanda Sishuba, and Jimmy Cabot remain in the recovery room.
Highlighted Player (Marcos Acuña):
Marcos Acuna is an Argentina international who plays for Sporting Club de Portugal as a winger. Born in Zapala, Argentina on October 28, 1991, Acuna started his senior career at Ferro Carril Oeste. After scoring 5 goals in 117 appearances for the Argentine club from 2010 to 2014, he moved to Racing Club in the summer of 2014.
The 172-cm-tall footballer looked sharper in front of goal during his spell with la Academia, scoring 16 goals in 78 appearances for the club. In June 2017 Marcos Acuna decided to take a step forward in his career, joining Portuguese outfit Sporting CP. He made his debut with the Lions in a 2-0 win over Deportivo Aves on August 6, 2017.
Acuna plays for the Argentine national team as well, making his debut for la Albiceleste on November 15, 2016 in a World Cup qualifier against Colombia. His main position is left-back, but he is used as both left midfielder and left winger as well.
Highlighted Team (Lens):
Based in the Pas-De-Calais department, Lens is a French club that plays home games at Stade Bollaert-Delelis. The Sang et Or are well known for their red shirts with yellow stripes, while black is the dominant colour of their away jersey.
The club was founded back in 1906 and the Sang et Or originally played in green and black shirts. Speaking of their home ground, Stade Bollaert-Delelis can hold up to 38,058 spectators. The venue was opened back in 1933, and renovated during the 2014/15 season. Lens did well to win the Ligue 1 trophy in the 1997/98 season, with the team finishing the process level on points with second-place Metz.
As a result, the Sang et Or represented France in the Champions League group stages the following season. The club’s biggest European success came in the 1999/00 season when they made it to the UEFA Cup semis. Lens have won two Coupe de la Ligue trophies as well.