Our prediction for this Champions League match:
Sevilla and Lens go head to head at Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in round 1 of the Champions League group stages. Los Sevillanos turned their dominance into victory against Las Palmas on Sunday, with summer signing Dodi Lukebakio scoring the winner and, as a result, boss Jose Luis Mendilibar managed to keep his job. All Marcao Nianzou, and Acuna should miss out with injuries, while aforementioned forward Lukebakio is pushing for a start.
The Ligue 1 outfit, on the other hand, have been struggling in the national championship ever since key players left the club in the summer transfer window. Les Sang et Or are low on confidence following three consecutive league wins and we do not believe that they are capable of spoiling Sevilla’s party at “Pizjuan”. As for the visiting team, Facundo Medina is back from a domestic ban, whereas all Nampalys Mendy, David Costa, Jimmy Cabot, and Wuilker Farinez remain in the recovery room.
Highlighted Player (Marko Dmitrovic):
A Red Star Belgrade youth prospect, Serbian goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic never got a chance to shine at his boyhood club. The talented shot-stopper was forced to take a longer road to prominence and travelled through Hungary, England and Spain to find his place under the sun. Spells with Ujpest, Charlton Athletic and Alcoron brought nothing but disappointment for the Serbia ‘keeper, who rose to full prominence at Eibar.
Dmitrovic was voted the best player of Eibar for the 2017/18 season after not missing a single league appearance for Los Armeros. Apart from his footballing exploits, Marko Dmitrovic remains remembered for saving Angel Rodriguez Diaz’s life in a game against Getafe.
Dmitrovic was the one to unintentionally knock Angel to the ground after a duel in the box and was also the first one to pull his tongue out when it became apparent that Angel was lying still on the ground. Marko Dmitrovic is Serbia’s second choice goalkeeper who made his debut in 2017. The Eibar custodian was part of Serbia’s World Cup expedition in Russia but did not get a chance in goal with Vladimir Stojkovic being favoured between the sticks.
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.