KRC Genk will be looking to overturn a 1-0 deficit as they welcome Olympiakos to Cegeka Arena for the second leg of their UEFA Europa League third round tie. The Greeks will prove a hard nut to crack, meaning this may be a closely fought encounter.
It has been a tough few months for Genk, losing the Belgian title in the final seconds of last season and then failing to progress beyond the Champions League second qualifying round. Now the Belgians appear on the verge of crashing out of the Europa League unless they can overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg.
Genk have been erratic in recent weeks, claiming just three wins in their last nine matches across all competitions, although the did pick up a 1-0 victory over Cercle Brugge last weekend. It is a similar situation at Cegeka Arena, where Wouter Vrancken’s men are winless in their last two matches and suffered a 1-0 defeat to AS Eupen in their previous home fixture.
Goals have been hard to come by lately for Genk who appear to be lacking ideas in the final third of the pitch. They had failed to score in two straight matches prior to the winner at Cercle Brugge which was actually an own-goal from the hosts.
Olympiakos were full value for that 1-0 victory in the first leg as they put up an impressive defensive display to hold out for the win. Konstantinos Fortunis opened the scoring in the first minute of the contest and they successfully fended off any hopes of a comeback from Genk, limiting them to just two attempts on target throughout the contest.
The Greek Super League is yet to kick off, so Olympiakos are likely to be well rested and prepared for Thursday’s clash. However, with one eye on the season opener against Panserraikos on Sunday, the priority for manager Diego Martinez will be to defend their lead and avoid defeat in Belgium.
The good news for Olympiakos is that they have shown some quality on their recent travels, losing just once in their last five away matches across all competitions. However, the goals have not flowed freely as they have scored more than one goal just once in that run.
How the bookies view it
Genk have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced at 4/5 by 10bet. A victory for Olympiakos is valued at 15/4 by BoyleSports while a draw is set at odds of 29/10 by William Hill.
Head to head
Prior to last week’s clash, the only previous meeting between Genk and Olympiakos was a friendly at Cegeka Arena in 2018 which ended 4-0 in favour of the Belgians.
Players to watch
Genk are not exactly in a desperate situation and are unlikely to throw caution to the wind by being overly attacking on Thursday. In fact, they will be looking to avoid getting hit on the break with centre-backs Carlos Cuesta and Mark McKenzie keen to see out a clean sheet at 8/5 with 10bet.
Olympiakos already showed their defensive quality in the first leg and will be seeking a similar performance on Thursday. Nicolas Freire and Panagiotis Restos are expected to continue at the back and can lead the Greek side to another clean sheet at 9/2 with BoyleSports.
Anything else catch the eye?
There have been under 2.5 goals in Genk’s last three matches and a similar outcome is priced at 21/20 by Unibet. With both teams seemingly targeting a clean sheet on Thursday, BTTS NO can be considered at 23/20 by BetVictor.
With Thursday’s clash likely to be a closely fought encounter, a halftime draw can be tipped at 13/10 with Unibet.
This UEFA Europa League match between KRC Genk and Olympiakos will be played on Aug 17, 2023 and kick off at 19:00. Check below for our tipsters best KRC Genk vs Olympiakos prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
