Royale Union Saint-Gilloise v Liverpool

Lotto Park is the venue as Royale Union Saint-Gilloise and Liverpool go head-to-head in an exciting Europa League Group E finale.

Royale Union’s Europa League campaign is about to unfold as they head into the final group stage round in third, three points adrift of runners-up Toulouse. A win in this fixture, coupled with the French side’s potential loss to LASK Linz, would catapult the Belgian outfit into the knockout playoff round, provided they win by a two-goal margin or the Frenchmen lose by 2+ goals margin. With Liverpool likely to field an understrength lineup and Royale Union heading into proceedings amidst an impressive 13-match form across all competitions (W10, D2, L1), the hosts look well-positioned to hold up their end of the bargain. Furthermore, Alexander Blessin’s men have won their last six competitive outings on home soil despite conceding precisely once on five occasions.

In the meantime, Liverpool’s near-perfect Europa League season (W4, L1) has earned them a top-place finish in Group E with a game to spare. Jurgen Klopp’s side eased past Royale Union 2-0 in the reverse fixture on Matchday 2, solidifying their outstanding all-time record against Belgian clubs in European football (W13, D2, L1). However, the ‘Reds’ won’t care much about the result here despite winning four consecutive matches in the build-up to this encounter, including a sensational 2-1 comeback triumph at Crystal Palace last weekend. Back at the top of the Premier League standings, the Merseyside giants ought to be confident of improving their evenly-balanced six-game form in away European matches (W3, L3). Adding to Klopp’s optimism, his men have won their last two games in the hostile setting after going winless on three previous travels (D2, L1).