West Ham will travel to Belgium this Thursday to face Belgian Pro League side Anderlecht in the third group stage round of the 2022/23 UEFA Europa Conference League season.
Venue: Lotto Park (Anderlecht)
Key Statistics
Anderlecht have kept just one clean sheet in their last six games.
Felice Mazzù has won only seven of the 16 matches he has overseen as Aderletcht coach (D2, L7).
West Ham have now won five of their last eight matches (D1, L2), with three of those successes coming in the UECL.
West Ham’s David Moyes is unbeaten in his last eight away group games in European competition (W5, D3).
The visitors have lost just two of their last nine away games in Europe (W5, D2).
Head to head
Both teams have met once in the past, which was in the final of the 1976 European Cup. Anderlecht won the game 4-2.
Latest performances in all competitions
Anderlecht: L-W-D-L-W
West Ham: W-L-W-W-L
Anderlecht
Anderlecht will look to record their second win in the Europa Conference League this season when they welcome West Ham to Lotto Park on Thursday.
The hosts opened their account in the Conference League group stage with a 1-0 win over Silkeborg and then followed that up with a goalless draw with FCSB last time out.
But in the league, they have struggled for consistency and come into this tie on the back of an embarrassing 1-0 home loss to Charleroi. The result leaves them sitting in 10th position in the Belgian Pro League after just ten games. They currently trail table-topping Antwerp by 14 points and as a result, pressure is mounting on head coach manager Felice Mazzù.
The Belgian coach has faced criticism for his style of football since taking charge in the summer, winning only seven of his 16 matches in the dugout (D2, L7).
He will be hoping that his side can channel the spirit of Anderlecht’s 1976 European Cup Winners’ Cup success when they face West Ham. Anderlecht won 4-2 in that final which was the only previous meeting between these sides 42 years ago and will be desperate for a repeat here to give them the chance of finishing in the top two places in this group.
Possible Anderlecht starting line-up
Hendrik van Crombrugge; Zeno Debast, Wesley Hoedt, Jan Vertonghen; Michael Murillo, Kristian Arnstad, Marco Kana, Majeed Ashimeru, Francis Amuzu; Fabio Silva, Lior Refaelov.
Injured: Benito Raman, Adrien Trebel
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
West Ham
After a poor start to the season, West Ham seem to have turned a corner with recent performances and results.
The Hammers went into the international on a low after suffering a 1-0 loss to lowly Everton. But they bounced back after the break to beat Wolves 2-0 last weekend, reviving their quest for a top six finish in the Premier League.
For all the criticism David Moyes has faced on the domestic front this term, his team have been utterly dominant in Europe. They won all their playoff games to qualify for the group stage of this tournament and have also won both of their opening group games.
And so, they come into this third game, sitting at the top of the Group B table, two points ahead of their hosts. A win in this game will put them one foot into the next round and give them control of the group.
Given that they have scored 2+ goals in each of their European games this season they will travel to Belgium confident of a good result. Their form in Europe away from home will also be a big boost given that the Hammers have lost just two of their last nine road trips in Europe (W5, D2).
Possible West Ham starting line-up
Lukasz Fabianski; Thilo Kehrer, Kurt Zouma, Aaron Cresswell; Vladimir Coufal, Tomas Soucek, Declan Rice, Pablo Fornals; Lucas Paqueta, Jarrod Bowen; Michail Antonio.
Injured: Nayef Aguerd
Doubtful: Ben Johnson
Suspended: None
Prediction
Anderlecht 1-2 West Ham
