Anderlecht vs Villarreal Prediction and Betting Tips | March 9th 2023

Anderlecht will host Villarreal at Lotto Park on Thursday in the first leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League last-16 tie.

The home side were drawn against Ludogorets in the Conference League playoffs last month and were beaten 1-0 in the first leg. They then picked up a 2-1 win in the return leg to send the tie to penalties where they secured a 3-0 victory following heroics from 20-year-old goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.

Anderlecht were beaten 1-0 by Gent in their most recent outing and will be looking to shake that off this week as they continue their quest for European glory.

Villarreal were favorites to come out of a group featuring Lech Poznan, Hapoel Be'er Sheva and Austria Wien and lived up to the billing, finishing top of their group with 13 points.

They have had a rough patch in their league assignment since the turn of the new year and will hope they can find better luck on the continental stage.

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Anderlecht vs Villarreal Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

• Thursday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Anderlecht and Villarreal.
• The hosts have won just four of their last 15 competitive games against Spanish opposition. They have drawn twice in that period and lost the other nine.
• The visitors' only encounter with Belgian opponents came back in the 2010-11 campaign when they faced Club Brugge in the group stages of the Europa League, winning 2-1 in both the home and away fixtures.
• Five of Anderlecht's 10 league wins this season have come at Lotto Park.
• Only four of Villarreal's 11 league wins this season have come away from home.
• El Submarino Amarillo have scored 28 league goals this season, the fewest of all the teams in the European spots in La Liga so far.

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Anderlecht vs Villarreal Prediction

Anderlecht are on a run of back-to-back winless outings and have won just one of their last five games across all competitions. They are, however, unbeaten in their last four home games and will hope to maximize their home advantage this week.

Villarreal are on a run of back-to-back victories after losing their four games prior. They picked up a 2-0 win over Almeria in their last away game, which should spur them to victory here.

Prediction: Anderlecht 1-2 Villarreal

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Anderlecht vs Villarreal Betting Tips

Tip 1 - Result: Villarreal

Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Three of the hosts' last four matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)

Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES (Both sides have found the back of the net in three of the Purple & White's last four matches)