When these two sides met on matchday three, it was an even contest but ultimately the strength of Freiburg’s squad shone through as they emerged 3-1 winners, with Vincenzo Grifo netting a hat-trick for his side.

The German side have been impressive in the Europa League so far and find themselves joint on points and goal difference with group leaders West Ham, who are the only side to defeat Freiburg in the group.

As expected, Backa Topola are still yet to pick up a win in the group stages but it is not through a lack of trying as the Serbian side have put in some strong performances and have only been let down by their lack of experience on the European stage.

Domestically, Freiburg sit four points off the European places and are three games without a win in all competitions. This season in the Bundesliga, they have seen 32 goals scored in their ten league fixtures which averages out to 3.2 goals per game.

Backa Topola have also seen plenty of goals in their league fixtures, with 36 scored in 13 games for an average of 2.77 goals per game.

It was a surprise loss for David Moyes’ West Ham side in the reverse fixture as they tasted defeat in Europe, putting an end to an unbeaten run of 17 games in European competition.

Bar the result in Greece, the Hammers have had the perfect start to their European campaign, winning their opening two fixtures against Backa Topola and Freiburg.

After a good start to the season domestically, the Hammers’ form has somewhat tailed off, with the East London side only winning one of their last five Premier League games. They have seen 38 goals scored by both teams in their 11 games so far and that averages out to 3.45 goals per game.

Olympiacos on the other hand are performing very well domestically, sitting second in the table having lost only two games all season. Their ten games have seen 35 total goals to a season average of 3.5 goals per game.

The top two teams in arguably the toughest Europa League group face off once again, as Marseille make the trip to Athens to take on AEK. It was a fairly even contest in the game between these two sides on matchday three but the quality of Marseille shone through as they emerged as eventual 3-1 winners, to maintain their unbeaten record in the group and storm into first place.

By their usual standards, Marseille have performed poorly on the domestic stage as they find themselves in ninth place, two points off the European play-offs and three points off the relegation play-offs. Their games in Ligue 1 have seen an average of 2.4 goals scored per game, with 24 finding the net in ten league fixtures.

AEK on the other hand are flying domestically and have only lost one league game all season; that being a shock 2-0 loss away to OFI Crete. They have 27 goals scored in their ten league games so far, which is an average of 2.7 goals a game.

Aston Villa host AZ Alkmaar in the first of two Conference League ties in this accumulator.

It has been a very impressive start to the 2023/24 season for Unai Emery’s Aston Villa side, who have surprised many with their performances so far this campaign. The Villans find themselves in fifth place in the Premier League and many will consider this a significant overachievement to this point.

They have the third-highest average goals scored in the league with 2.4 after scoring 26 goals in their 11 Premier League fixtures so far. Villa have continued their good league form onto the European stage too, finding themselves second in the group, level on points with Legia Warsaw at the top.

It was a fantastic performance by Emery’s side in the reverse fixture in Alkmaar, with the Premier League team emerging 4-1 winners at the home of a side who are yet to taste defeat in the Eredivisie.

From a betting perspective, the bet that makes the most sense is backing a Villa win. They have the best home record in the Premier League and have scored the most goals at home in the league.

Lille make the trip to Bratislava to face Slovan Bratislava in Group A of the Conference League.

As expected, Lille have dominated Group A and they sit without tasting defeat. The reverse fixture at home to Bratislava was a nervy affair for the French side though, leaving it late to come from behind and get the win.

Domestically, Lille have performed as expected and they find themselves in and around the Champions League places. In the league this season, they have seen 24 goals scored in their games to an average of 2.18 goals scored per game. Bratislava on the other hand are on fire domestically, winning all but three of their league fixtures this campaign and only losing once.

They’re the league’s entertainers and have seen 44 goals shared across their 13 games, which averages out to 3.38 goals per game. Despite this though, backing a Lille win in Thursday’s game could be a wise choice to make as their squad will likely prove too strong across the course of the match.