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Two sides who could do well with a win go head-to-head in round 38 of the Belgian Jupiler League on Friday as Standard Liege play host to Westerlo at the Stade Maurice Dufrasne. Ivan Leko’s men have failed to get the better of the visitors in their last five meetings and will look to end this poor run.
Standard Liege failed to stop the rot last Sunday as they suggested a 3-1 defeat against Oud-Heverlee Leuven at the King Power at Den Dreef Stadion.
Leko’s side have now failed to win their seven matches in the Conference League playoff round, losing twice and claiming five draws since claiming a 4-0 victory over Eupen in their final game of the regular season.
Standard Liege will hope to find their feet this weekend as they return home, where they are unbeaten in six consecutive games, picking up three wins and three draws since the start of February.
Like the hosts, Westerlo continue to struggle for results in the Jupiler League as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Sint-Truidense.
Bart Goor’s men have now failed to taste victory in 11 straight matches, losing seven and picking up four draws since beating Standard Liege 2-1 in February.
With 18 points from 37 matches, Westerlo are currently sixth in the league table, four points and one place below Friday’s hosts.
Standard Liege vs Westerlo Head-To-Head
With 24 wins from the last 40 meetings between the sides, Standard Liege boast a superior record in the history of this fixture. Westerlo have picked up six wins in that time, while the spoils have been shared on 10 occasions.
Standard Liege have failed to win their last five games against Westerlo, losing twice and claiming three draws since a 2-0 victory in March 2023.
Standard Liege Form Guide: L-D-D-D-D
Westerlo Form Guide: D-L-D-D-L
Standard Liege vs Westerlo Team News
Standard Liege
Leko will be unable to name several players down the spine of the team due to injuries.
Injured: Aiden O'Neill, Zinho Vanheusden, Merveille Bokadi, Laurent Henkinet, Nathan Ngoy
Suspended: None
Westerlo
Nacer Chadli, Emin Bayram and Ilias El Hari are all recuperating from injuries and will play no part in Friday’s game.
Injured: Nacer Chadli, Emin Bayram, Ilias El Hari
Suspended: None
Standard Liege vs Westerlo Predicted XI
Standard Liege Predicted XI (3-5-2): Matthieu Epolo; Jonathan Panzo, Lucas Noubi, Konstantinos Laifis; Marlon Fossey, Hayao Kawabe, Isaac Price, Hakim Sahabo, Cihan Canak; Wilfried Kanga, Kelvin Yeboah
Westerlo Predicted XI (4-2-31): Sinan Bolat; Bryan Reynolds, Ravil Tagir, Roman Neustaedter, Jordan Bos; Arthur Piedfort, Serhiy Sydorchuk; Griffin Yow, Nicolas Madsen, Josimar Alcocer; Lucas Stassin
Standard Liege vs Westerlo Prediction
Standard Liege and Westerlo have struggled to get going at the business end of the season and will both head into the weekend in search of a pick-me-up.
However, we predict they will cancel out each other’s efforts and settle for a share of the spoils.
Prediction: Standard Liege 1-1 Westerlo
