Benfica will be looking to complete the double over Toulouse when both teams clash in the Europa League playoff second leg. The French side are still out of sorts, even at home and Benfica will be confident of claiming the upper hand.
Toulouse will be disappointed not to have held out as they were beaten 2-1 by Benfica in the first leg. They looked to have earned a draw following Mikkel Desler’s equaliser but went on to concede an injury time winner.
That result is in keeping with Toulouse’s recent form as they have claimed two wins and suffered three defeats from their last five matches across all competitions. However, they will head into Thursday’s clash with some confidence following a 2-1 victory at Monaco in a Ligue 1 fixture last Sunday.
Among the problems for Toulouse heading into Thursday’s clash is a poor record in front of their fans. They are winless in their last six home matches across all competitions, losing the last three in that run.
Benfica showed their character in the first leg as a brace of penalties from Angel Di Maria earned them the win. They kept pushing after Toulouse’s equaliser until the Argentine forward netted the winner deep into injury time.
The Portuguese giants may have laboured for that win but the result is consistent with their recent showings. They have won eight of their last 10 matches across all competitions, and claimed a 6-1 victory over Vizela in a Primeira Liga fixture last weekend.
Benfica have also impressed on their recent travels and are unbeaten in their last seven away matches. Roger Schmidt’s men have claimed five wins in that run but are without a clean sheet in the last three.
How the bookies view it
Benfica have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 10/11 by Coral to claim the win. A victory for Toulouse is valued at 16/5 by BoyleSports while a draw is set at odds of 27/10 by Unibet.
Head to head
Last week’s victory means Benfica have now won all two previous meetings with Toulouse.
Players to watch
Thijs Dallinger had a quiet outing in the first meeting but remains the most dangerous attacker for Toulouse. The striker has four Europa League goals this season and is priced at 11/4 by bet365 to find the net on Thursday.
Despite failing to find his rhythm in the first meeting, Arthur Cabral could be worth keeping an eye on for Benfica. The striker has found the net in the last three away matches and is priced 41/20 by Unibet to maintain his scoring run.
Anything else catch the eye?
Both teams were on target in the first meeting and a similar pattern is priced at 8/11 by Coral. That fixture also produced over 2.5 goals, which is valued at 4/5 by William Hill while over 3.5 goals is valued at 2/1 by Betfred.
Benfica have scored in both halves in four of their last five matches and a repeat is priced at 9/5 by William Hill.
This UEFA Europa League match between Toulouse and Benfica will be played on Feb 22, 2024 and kick off at 17:45. Check below for our tipsters best Toulouse vs Benfica prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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