LILLE hold a slender lead as they travel to Fenerbahce for the second leg of their Champions League third round qualifier. The Turks will be banking on a superior home record and should have the upper hand over their French rivals.
Despite suffering a defeat in last week’s first leg, Fenerbahce will be pleased with their performance. Irfan Kahveci gave them a lifeline with his second half effort and Jose Mourinho’s men will be confident of turning things around in front of their fans.
Sukru Saracoglu is generally considered a fortress and Fenerbahce often do some of their best work on home soil. They claimed a 2-1 victory over Lugano in the previous round of the Champions League and also began their Super Lig campaign with a 1-0 home victory over Adana Demirspor last weekend.
Lille are looking to build on that 2-1 victory from the first leg after Edon Zhegrova’s injury time effort gave them the advantage. They will be disappointed not to have claimed a bigger win having seen more of the possession and had more efforts on goal.
While the Turks are already into their season, Last week’s clash was the first taste of competitive action for Lille. Bruno Genesio’s men have not travelled well in preseason, failing to win at Genk and Wolfsburg.
How the bookies view it: Fenerbahce to prevail
Fenerbahce have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 9/10 by Betfred to claim the win. A victory for Lille is valued at 13/5 while Betfred is also offering odds of 13/5 for a draw.
Head to head: Lille still unbeaten
Last week’s 2-1 victory means Lille are now unbeaten in three matches against Fenerbahce, claiming two wins in that run.
Players to watch: Eyes on Dzeko
Edin Dzeko was quiet in the first leg but already has five goals in these qualifiers and will be the one to watch on Sunday. He also grabbed the only goal in Fenerbahce’s Super Lig win last weekend and is priced at 7/4 with Betfred to find the net once again.
Jonathan David is still getting up to speed for Lille having re-joined the team late following his involvement in the Copa America. The Canadian striker remains the biggest attacking threat for the French side and is priced at 9/5 by Betfred to get on the score sheet.
Probable line-ups
Irfan Kahveci could be included from the start for Fenerbahce having come off the bench to good effect in the first leg. Edin Dzeko should continue to lead the line while Caglar Soyuncu is set to feature at the back.
Lille are not expected to make too many changes to their team with Edon Zhegrova likely to play as a substitute once again despite coming on to good effect last time out. Jonathan David should continue in attack while Bafode Diakite should retain his place in the defence.
Fenerbahce: Livakovic, Muldur, Soyuncu, Oosterwolde, Kadioglu, Szymanski, Yusek, Krunic, Kahveci, Tadic, Dzeko.
Lille: Chevalier, Gudmundsson, Alexsandro Ribeiro, Meunier, Haraldsson, Gomes, Andre, Tiago Santos, Cabella, David.
Anything else catch the eye?
Lots of chances went begging in the first leg and some better finishing on Tuesday could result in a high-scoring encounter. Over 3.5 goals is valued at 9/4 with Betfred, who is also offering 4/5 for over 2.5 goals while both teams could be backed to score at 8/11.
There were more goals after the break in the first meeting and a similar pattern is priced at 21/20 by Betfred.
This UEFA Champions League match between Fenerbahce and Lille will be played on Aug 13, 2024 and kick off at 18:00. Check below for our tipsters best Fenerbahce vs Lille prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
