Club Brugge vs Union St.Gilloise. Prediction and Preview. Probable Lineups, Team News, Stats, and more

Club Brugge KV will face Royale Union Saint-Gilloise in the Belgian Super Cup final match at the Jan Breydel Stadium in Bruges. The fixture will take place on Saturday, July 20, beginning at 23:30 IST.

Parimatch News will tell you everything you need to know ahead of the upcoming match.

Club Brugge News & Current Form: 

Last summer, the Club Brugge management paid nearly two million euros to Standard de Liege for head coach Ronny Deila, with the hope that he would strengthen the club following a disappointing season. This move infuriated Standard fans, who deemed the Norwegian a traitor, further deepening their animosity towards the Black and Blues.

Discontent began to grow in September 2023 as the club from Bruges consistently dropped points. The situation worsened in early October: Deila’s team lost to his former club in the 10th round and then to bottom-placed KV Kortrijk in the 11th round. Media noted that securing only 16 out of a possible 33 points marked the club’s worst start in 40 years.

The coach attributed the crisis to poor finishing, a fair assessment. By the end of the first half of the season, Brugge were seventh in the table, although their expected points suggested they deserved second place. Despite a slight improvement by March, the gap to the leaders had widened, leading to the mentor’s dismissal. Nicky Hayen, who had long served as an assistant coach, took over and ultimately led the team to the league title. The team was not among the favourites at the start of the season, but a strong finish secured their 19th Belgian championship. Consequently, Hayen was appointed as the permanent head coach. Now, the 43-year-old faces the task of building a team capable of retaining the title and achieving success in European competitions.

Speaking of that, last season Brugge reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League, where they faced ACF Fiorentina. In the first leg, the Italian side quickly established themselves as favourites with a goal from Riccardo Sottil. However, Brugge equalised through a Hans Vanaken penalty. Despite the red card of Raphael Onyedika, the Belgian team managed to draw level with goals from Jorne Spileers and Igor Thiago. In the closing moments, Mbala Nzola secured a 3:2 victory for the Violas.

Gaffer of the Club Brugge Nicky Hayen brought his team to 19th Belgian league championship

The return leg on 8 May ended in a 1:1 draw: Vanaken put Brugge ahead, but an 85th-minute penalty of Lucas Beltran equalised for Fiorentina. Thus, the Italian side progressed to the final (they eventually lost to Olympiacos FC) with a 4:3 aggregate score.

Following such successful seasons, clubs often sell their star players, and Brugge was no exception. The team lost its main attacking force, striker Igor Thiago. In response, the club made several transfers, although none of the new signings are high-profile names, indicating a focus on future potential.

During the pre-season, Club Brugge has shown promise. The team boasts well-coordinated play and high ball possession, allowing them to dominate most matches. Recent results include a 1:1 draw with PSV Eindhoven, a 4:1 victory over AEK Athens FC, a 1:1 draw with Royal Knokke FC, and a 3:0 thrashing of Norwich City FC. 

Hayen’s squad is known for its tactical flexibility and ability to adapt to various playing styles. Brugge excel at home, with their main strengths being relentless fighting for every inch of the pitch, hard work, and player cohesion. Two players of the Belgian club are set to miss the upcoming friendly fixture: Bjorn Meijer with a knee injury and Kyriani Sabbe with a muscle injury.

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Union St.Gilloise News & Current Form: 

The team is based in Saint-Gilles and is considered a mid-tier club in the Belgian league. USG is arguably one of the most unfortunate teams in recent European football. Despite playing in the top division for just three seasons, they have consistently come close to winning the championship, only to fall short each time. This pattern raises a pertinent question: why does the team lead for most of the season but consistently falter at the finish line? As a result last season, Union finished second in the Belgian Pro League, missing out on the top spot by just one point. This commendable performance has earned the club a chance to compete in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers.

One of last season’s best players of USG, Mohamed Amoura, has moved to VfL Wolfsburg

However, Union have struggled to retain all its key players. One of last season’s best players, Mohamed Amoura, has moved to VfL Wolfsburg, while Gustaf Nilsson surprisingly joined their main rivals, Club Brugge.

The team is actively preparing for the new season and looks very promising, as evidenced by their four friendly matches. They remain unbeaten, with three wins and two draws. Initially, they faced lesser-known opponents but later defeated Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles and Greek team PAOK FC, both with a score of 2:1. USG have found good form and is capable of challenging any opponent. Their match against a formidable opponent, Portuguese side Sporting CP, ended in an entertaining 2:2 draw. Christian Burgess and Ross Sykes will be on the bench in the upcoming match due to foot injuries.

Club Brugge form guide: W-D-D-D-W-W

Union St.Gilloise form guide: W-D-D-W-W-D

Club Brugge vs Union St.Gilloise Head-To-Head Record:

• February 7, 2024: Club Brugge 2 – 1 Union SG (Belgian Cup);
• February 28, 2024: Union SG 2 – 0 Club Brugge (Belgian Cup);
• April 21, 2024: Union SG 1 – 2 Club Brugge (Belgian Pro League);
• May 13, 2024: Club Brugge 2 – 2 Union SG (Belgian Pro League).

Club Brugge vs Union St.Gilloise Predicted XI:

Club Brugge’s possible starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Mignolet; Et-Taibi, Spileers, Mechele, Seys; Vetlesen, Nielsen; Nusa, Vanaken, Tzolis; Jutgla.

Union St.Gilloise’s possible starting lineup (5-3-2): Moris; Mac Allister, Machida, Leysen, Vanhoutte, Sadiki; Terho, Castro Montes, Ait El Hadj; Puertas, Ayensa.

Statistical preview of the match Club Brugge vs Union St.Gilloise:

• The total value of Brugge’s squad is 155 mln euros, while the total of SG comes up to just 86 mln euros.
• Brugge’s First XI average age is 26.2 years, and Union’s First XI average age is 25.3 years.
• Bram Van Driessche has been appointed as the centre referee. The match official has already served 23 games this season, showing an average of 4 yellow cards and also whistles 22 fouls per game. 
• Brugge has not known the taste of defeat for 10 games now.
• Union have scored at least two goals per game this offseason. 
• St-Gillois has secured 3 victories in the last five games. 

What has been said before the match:

Gaffer of the Brugge Nicky Hayen after the friendly meeting with Norwich City:

“Everyone has to stay sharp. Sometimes you have to challenge and trigger the players because it is going too easy. Because we gave away too many matches last season? No, not especially. I want to avoid nonchalance and make sure that everyone keeps going”

“Against PSV there was clearly a lack of freshness. That practice match was very educational. Those images will be useful to show the players certain things: how we can press even better, where the spaces were.”

“You could clearly see that the opponent had a hard time when we executed our plan perfectly. Of course, that didn’t work for a full match: the tough training week had something to do with that. Now we’re going to focus on the tactical side for the next two weeks.”

“We knew before the season that the problem with injuries would arise. So now we are mainly looking for solutions. It is about making choices. At the beginning of the season, it is always a bit of a search, for every team.”

Club Brugge vs Union St.Gilloise Prediction:

It appears that the balance of power between the teams is even, with the teams going toe-to-toe from season to season, where the most recent head-to-head matches indicate parity while the players of both squads are still coming into their optimum form after the break. Nevertheless, Union St.Gilloise’s attacking potential is seriously reduced due to the loss of two key strikers, while unperturbed Brugge’s attacking vanguard is sound and continuously offers a pillar of the club’s success, making the Black and Blues the favourites for the upcoming clash. Their star Thiago Igor has left, but the team’s most expensive and promising players such as Antonio Nusa and Andreas Skov Olsen are concentrated in the attacking line. We expect Brugge to win the Super Cup. The difference will be made by controlling the transition phases in midfield, and there the class is on the side of the hosts – Brugge has a rising star or a seasoned player with a lot of regalia in every position while freshly appointed Sébastien Pocognoli can’t boast such instrumentation. 

Parimatch News staff prediction:

We say: Club Brugge KV will win — Yes. 

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