Lens vs Sevilla

Lens will be looking to confirm their switch to the Europa League knockout playoff round when they meet Sevilla in their last Champions League Group D showdown.

Despite being held to a rare scoring blank in Ligue 1 this season, Lens’ tepid 0-0 draw at Montpellier last weekend extended their unbeaten league run to ten matches, setting them up nicely for this ‘make or break’ contest. Back-to-back defeats after a three-game undefeated start to their Champions League Group B campaign (W1, D2) deprived Lens of any hope of reaching the knockout stages ahead of the final round. However, Franck Haise’s side can still secure European fixtures beyond Christmas by avoiding defeat in this encounter. There’s plenty of reason for optimism as ‘Les Sang et Or’ haven’t lost any of their last seven home outings in all competitions (W5, D2), including three wins in a row via a combined score of 8-2 in the build-up to this meeting.

By contrast, anything other than a victory would eliminate out-of-sorts Sevilla from European competition this term. Given their precarious spot in the La Liga standings following a disheartening 1-0 defeat at Mallorca last weekend, it could prove a blessing in disguise. New manager Diego Alonso is still waiting for his first win against top-flight opposition, having gone winless in his first ten such fixtures in charge of the Andalusian powerhouse (D5, L5). Considering Sevilla’s woeful Group B record (D2, L3) and the fact they’ve not won any of their nine away games against top-tier rivals in 2023/24 (D4, L5), their hopes of ending a disastrous nine-game winless Champions League streak on the road (D6, L3) looks far-fetched.