Anderlecht v West Ham

Anderlecht hosts West Ham for the first time since their 1976 European Cup Winners' Cup final. Both teams are no longer the superpowers of the past, quite the contrary. They have both been looking for continuity and success in recent seasons.

The season is less than three months old, and Anderlecht is already experiencing their first crisis. In the league, mid-table club Charleroi came to Lotto Park on Sunday and left with the 3 points. This drops Anderlecht to the 10th place in the standings, far away from the hoped-for top four. The defensive stability of the first matches is missing and offensively things have not really run smoothly so far this season.

The hosts' lack of a target striker is very apparent. Players like Esposito and Raman are quick but lack duelling power and Fabio Silva also has not quite cut it at centre forward. Perhaps coach Felice Mazzu will give Duranville a try up front. The 16-year-old Belgian has been a bright spot in recent weeks and has good 1-on-1 moves. So far, he has mainly been played out on the left wing.

West Ham won 2-0 at home to Wolverhampton this weekend to move out of the relegation zone. However, with seven points from eight games, it is still fair to call it a poor start to the Premier League season. In the Conference League, however, they have started strongly with 6 points from 6 available.

Visiting second-placed Anderlecht (4 out of 6 points), the Hammers can secure European football after the winter break. In their successful Europa League campaign last year, they faced a Belgian team with Genk. In London they won 3-0, in Genk they drew 2-2. Judging by the quality that is still present in West Ham's squad, they should have few problems with Anderlecht as well. 

Given their top position in the group, they don't even need to win to ensure their progression, and Anderlecht, for their part, might also be satisfied with a point. Therefore, a bet on West Ham, draw no bet, seems most appropriate.