Royale Union Saint-Gilloise vs Ajax

King Baudouin Stadium is the venue as Royale Union Saint-Gilloise and Ajax go head-to-head in the first leg of their Europa League knockout playoff tie. 

Three consecutive league-phase victories before a 2-1 defeat to Rangers in the final round put Royale Union SG through to the European knockouts for the third season on the trot. Despite their relatively brief continental experience, the hosts should be confident of making it out of this match-up after navigating both previous first-round knockout ties. However, they’ve traditionally been off to a slow start, failing to win the first leg of a major European knockout tie ten times in a row (D4, L6). Yet, Sébastien Pocognoli’s charges head into proceedings amid a purple patch, having won six of their last seven outings across all competitions (L1). Furthermore, they’ve emerged victorious from eight out of nine most recent matches as the designated home team (D1). 

Meanwhile, Ajax experienced a topsy-turvy league-phase campaign, winning 50% of their matches under the new Europa League format (W4, D1, L3). Nonetheless, they’ve progressed into the knockout stages of a major European competition for the seventh season running. Confidence stems from Ajax’s eye-catching run of eight victories across their last ten matches in all competitions (L2), including three on the spin, starting with a 2-1 home triumph against Galatasaray in this competition. Moreover, the Lancers have fared outstandingly against Belgian opposition throughout history, suffering just four defeats in 18 H2Hs (W10, D4). On a less positive note, Francesco Farioli’s men have only won one of their last ten knockout games in a major European competition (D5, L4).