The Pro League season got underway last weekend as the title challengers looked to get off to a flying start and newly promoted sides aimed to gain some early momentum in order to give themselves the best chance of remaining in the league.
However, there were some surprising results in the first round of fixtures with all of last season’s top four, Club Brugge, Genk, Antwerp and Anderlecht failing to get off to a winning start which gives the Pro League rankings a surprising early look. We also saw top-flight newcomers St. Gilloise kick off their campaign in style with an unexpected 3-1 win over Anderlecht, whilst last season’s relegation battlers Cercle Brugge, St. Truiden and Kortrijk also claimed their first victories.
At Bet777.be, we’ve taken a look at the second round of fixtures and given our sport betting predictions as to who will come out on top this weekend. Why not have a look at these sport bets and give our Super777 a go for the chance to win our €1,000 jackpot? And if you like the thought of live betting, you can build your own accumulator with us and you might just win big!
Genk vs Oostende
Both these sides failed to get off to the desired start. Genk were held by Standard Liege in a tight affair whereas Oostende were handed a disappointing 3-0 defeat at the hands of Charleroi. Looking ahead to this one, Genk are favourites and for good reason. Oostende haven’t tended to fare well on the road, managing only the 12th best away record last season despite finishing 5th.
We also expect Genk to kickstart their season after a difficult opening game in which they stole a point with a last-gasp equaliser from Theo Bongonda. Their attack looks strong with Junya Ito and Bongonda flanking the ever-impressive Paul Onuachu, who is bound to get on the scoresheet at some point. We think it will be sooner rather than later and are backing the home side to win comfortably in our online bets.
Genk to win @ 1.62
Charleroi vs St. Truiden
Not a lot separated these two sides last season and the same can be said about the opening game for both teams, both got off the mark with three points. Charleroi were clinical in a 3-0 drubbing of Oostende and St. Truiden saw off a strong Gent team to take all the points.
We think this will be a close match but Charleroi should have enough to see off the visiting team who struggled on the road last season. Charleroi’s strike partnership between Chris Bedia and youngster Anass Zaroury looked impressive and they will be confident of continuing their good form and Charleroi are definitely a strong pick for our sport bets.
Charleroi to win @ 2.10
Cercle Brugge vs Leuven
Cercle Brugge got off to the perfect start with a 1-0 win over a talented Beerschot VA side whereas Leuven failed to capitalise on Waregem going down to 10 men with half an hour to go. Leuven were 9 points better off than Brugge last season but youngster Olivier Deman’s winner capped off a solid performance by last season’s 16th place side.
Leuven are always dangerous with the prolific Thomas Henry leading the line but Brugge will be full of confidence and hoping to make it six points from a possible six. We think the two sides will cancel each other out.
Draw @ 3.90
Seraing vs KV Mechelen
It’s difficult to see Seraing getting anything from this game despite being the home side. The newly promoted side were comfortably beaten in their opening game by Kortrijk and they appear early favourites to be relegated. KV Mechelen, on the other hand, got off to a superb start with a 3-2 win over Antwerp thanks to a brace from Dutch forward Ferdy Druijf. The 23-year-old helped Mechelen overturn a two-goal deficit in a game which they dominated, controlling 65% of the possession and having 18 attempts at goal.
The two sides’ opening games could not have been any more contrasting and we think KV Mechelen will continue their strong start to the season with a comfortable win away from home.
KV Mechelen to win @ 2.00
Eupen vs Anderlecht
Eupen were denied an opening game win over champions Club Brugge thanks to an equaliser in the 13th minute of stoppage time by young talent Charles de Ketelaere. Eupen were dominated for large portions of the game but capitalised on their chances and were resilient in defence against the waves of Club Brugge attacks. It was a different story for Anderlecht, who controlled their game against newly promoted St. Gilloise but failed to turn possession into chances. The visitors were clinical and made Anderlecht pay, scoring three of their five shots on target.
Eupen will probably find themselves without the ball again this weekend but they won’t mind that. Unfortunately for them, it won’t be too long until Anderlecht are back up and running. We think Vincent Kompany’s side will look to put right that first result and will have too much for Eupen.
Anderlecht to win @ 2.00
Saint Gilloise vs Club Brugge
Saint Gilloise had the dream start with their shock win over Anderlecht, but Club Brugge are another step up. The reigning champions have bundles of quality across the pitch and game-changers on the bench too. They will be out for vengeance after their disappointing opening game draw and Saint Gilloise will be in the firing line.
Club Brugge to win @ 1.68
Waregem vs Standard Liege
Both sides opened up their campaigns with 1-1 draws, and we think this one may end in a tie too. Standard Liege will be hoping to build on their sixth place finish last season and will need to get back to winning ways if they are to do so. Many of their hopes will be on Congolese youngster Jackson Muleka to build on his impressive opening season by reaching double-figures for his goal tally.
The opposing centre-forward is at the other end of his career, but veteran Jelle Vossen proved his goalscoring days are not yet behind him with his first goal of the season in Waregem’s opening Pro League fixture. Standard Liege are slight favourites but Waregem will be tough to beat at the Elindus Arena.
Draw @ 3.30
Gent vs Beerschot VA
Only two points separated these two sides in the last campaign and both got off to equally disappointing starts in their opening games. Both were beaten by sides who were threatened by relegation last season and Beerschot VA star man Raphael Holzhauser failed to make the expected impact whilst Gent struggled in the absence of goalscorer Roman Yaremchuk. Gent are huge favourites to win this one but we’re not sure that’s entirely just. Beerschot VA could be a big money winner @ 8.00, but we think it’s more likely this ends all square.
Draw @ 5.25
Antwerp vs Kortrijk
Despite Kortrijk kicking off their Pro League campaign with a win, it came against arguably the weakest side in the division. They will have the momentum going into the game against Antwerp, who were beaten by an impressive KV Mechelen outfit, but we think last season’s regular stage runners-up will have too much. Swiss forward Michael Frey hit the ground running with a goal in the opening fixture and will be looking to kick on and better his previous campaign with relegated Waasland-Beveren. We can’t see anything other than a home win for the side who many think are underdogs to challenge for the title.
Antwerp to win @ 1.80
It was an exciting opening weekend to the Pro League but we think order will be restored in the second round of fixtures and expect the big boys to assert their dominance on the rest of the league.
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