RC Lens host Freiburg in their UEFA Europa League playoff first leg with both teams looking to continue their European campaign. Lens appear to have picked up their form at the right time and should have the upper hand over the Germans, who appear to be on a downward spiral lately.
RC Lens are in the playoffs of the Europa League after failing to progress from the Champions League. Franck Haise’s men finished third behind Arsenal and PSV and will be keen to continue their European campaign, even if it is in the second tier.
One of the positives from Lens’ Champions League campaign was their home form as they were unbeaten in their three matches at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis. They can also count a 2-1 victory over Premier League high-fliers Arsenal among their results in that run.
Lens also head into Thursday’s clash off the back of three straight Ligue 1 wins. They have also won six of their last eight home matches across all competitions, including a 3-1 victory over Strasbourg in a domestic fixture last weekend.
Freiburg were decent during the group stage of the Europa League as they finished second in the standings having claimed four wins from six matches. However, given the new format, they will have to go through the playoffs in order to continue their European journey.
Having been fairly solid for much of the season, Freiburg appear to have picked the wrong time to have dropped their form. They travel to Lens with three straight defeats and were beaten 3-1 at Borussia Dortmund in a Bundesliga fixture last weekend.
The defeat at Dortmund highlights a poor away record for Freiburg, who have struggled on their travels in recent weeks. Christian Streich’s men have lost four of their last five away matches across all competitions.
How the bookies view it
RC Lens have been installed as overwhelming favourites and are priced at 17/20 by 10bet to claim the win. A victory for Freiburg is valued at 7/2 by Paddy Power while bet365 is offering odds of 14/5 for a draw.
Head to head
This will be the first ever meeting between RC Lens and Freiburg.
Players to watch
Elye Wahi caught the eye for Lens during the group stage of the Champions League, scoring in home games against Arsenal and PSV. The forward was also on target last weekend and is priced at 7/4 by bet365 to maintain his scoring run.
Vincenzo Grifo had three goals during the group stage of the Europa League and could be worth keeping an eye on for Freiburg. The attacker also has two goals in his last four matches and is priced at 4/1 by Paddy Power to score anytime on Thursday.
Anything else catch the eye
RC Lens and Freiburg have quality in attack and both teams could be backed to score at 10/11 with bet365. The French side saw over 3.5 goals last weekend and a repeat is priced at 5/2 with Betfred while over 2.5 goals is valued at 19/20 with Unibet.
Lens have also scored in both halves in three of their last four home matches and could be set for a similar outcome at 2/1 with bet365.
This UEFA Europa League match between RC Lens and Freiburg will be played on Feb 15, 2024 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best RC Lens vs Freiburg prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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