Sporting CP travel to Young Boys for their Europa League playoff first leg. Both teams have been in good form lately and particularly impressive going forward, which means goals could be expected on Thursday.
Having been placed in a difficult group with RB Leipzig and holders Manchester City, Young Boys were always going to struggle in the Champions League. However a win and a draw over Red Star Belgrade was enough to see them finish third and secure a place in the Europa League playoffs.
Young Boys have been in fine form since crashing out of the Champions League, with just one defeat in their last nine matches across all competitions. They claimed seven wins in that run but were held 3-3 by Lugano in a Swiss Super League fixture last weekend.
Stadion Wankdorf is where Young Boys often do their best work as they are unbeaten in their last 10 home matches, claiming nine wins in that run. The goals have flowed freely for Raphael Wicky’s men, who claimed a 5-1 victory over Yverdon Sport in their previous home fixture.
Sporting CP lost only once in the group phase of the Europa League but had to settle for a second place finish. They were plagued by too many draws brought on by a leaky defence that failed to keep a single clean sheet in six group stage matches.
Things have improved drastically for Sporting CP since the end of the Europa League group stage as they have won 10 of their last 11 matches across all competitions. Like Young Boys, the goals have also flowed freely for Ruben Amorim’s men, with a 5-0 victory over Sporting Braga last weekend highlighting that fact.
Sporting CP have also impressed on their recent travels, claiming five wins from their last six away matches across all competitions. A 5-2 victory over Vizela is among their results in that run while they also ran out 3-0 winners at Uniao de Leiria in their previous fixture on the road.
How the bookies view it
Sporting CP have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 10/11 by Coral to claim the win. A victory for Young Boys is valued at 14/5 by Paddy Power while a draw is also set at odds of 14/5 by BoyleSports.
Head to head
This will be the first ever meeting between Young Boys and Sporting CP.
Players to watch
Joel Monteiro has caught the eye for Young Boys in recent weeks and is expected to feature in attack on Thursday. The forward netted a brace in the previous home fixture and is priced at 4/1 by Paddy Power to get on the score sheet.
Viktor Gyokeres attracted plenty of attention during the January transfer window but Sporting Lisbon managed to hold on to their priced asset. The striker has 10 goals in his last nine matches across all competitions and is priced at 7/4 by Unibet to maintain his scoring run.
Anything else catch the eye?
Given the attacking quality on both sides, goals can be expected on Thursday. Over 2.5 goals is valued at 3/4 by Unibet, who is also offering odds of 19/10 on over 3.5 goals.
Young Boys and Sporting CP have produced more goals after the break in their recent fixtures, so both teams could be backed to score in the second half at 2/1 with William Hill.
This UEFA Europa League match between Young Boys and Sporting CP will be played on Feb 15, 2024 and kick off at 17:45. Check below for our tipsters best Young Boys vs Sporting CP prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.