Group F of the Europa League has reached gameweek five and there is still much to play for. As expected, Arsenal are top of the group and look set to qualify for the knockout stages.
However, below the Gunners are Standard Liege and Eintracht Frankfurt on six points. The former face a trip to Portugal on Thursday night to face Vitoria Guimaraes.
The game is a major opportunity for Standard to edge ahead in the race for qualification, with Eintracht Frankfurt facing Arsenal in the other game of the night. The problem for the visitors is that they have been highly inconsistent of late in all competitions.
Their inconsistency is illustrated in the fact that they have won two and lost two of their Group F games. A 2-1 win over Frankfurt last time out ended a mini losing run of two games in Europe for the Belgian side, though.
Standard have struggled for victories on their travels in Europe’s secondary competition, as they have failed to win in their last six away matches in the Europa League, suffering four defeats in the process.
Vitoria Guimaraes seems like the perfect team to face when in need of ending a poor run of form. The Portuguese team have been highly inconsistent this season, but have been consistently poor in the Europa League.
In fact, they have picked up just a point from their four outings in Group F, which came last time out when they held Arsenal to a 1-1 draw. The result ended a three-game losing run for the home side in the Europa League.
Vitoria Guimaraes have actually been hard to beat on home soil in the Europa League of late, as they have lost just once in their last eight home games in the competition.
🇵🇹 Guimarães, here we come ✈️👔 #SuitedbyMatinique (@carloetfils) 👌#VSCSTA #UEL pic.twitter.com/I8lmHxhIRc— Standard de Liège (@Standard_RSCL) November 27, 2019
🇵🇹 Guimarães, here we come ✈️👔 #SuitedbyMatinique (@carloetfils) 👌#VSCSTA #UEL pic.twitter.com/I8lmHxhIRc
Forebet predicts that this clash will finish in a low-scoring draw, which could dent the visitor’s qualification hopes.