Another defeat for the newcomers?
The Colchoneros are hosting visitors from Brussels, and we’re sending an Atletico Madrid vs. Union Saint Gilloise tip to the pitch at the Estadio Metropolitano! The hosts are the clear favorites in this matchup. Not only do they have the better squad, but they also have significantly more experience on the Champions League stage.
The Belgians are competing in the Champions League for the first time and it will be difficult for them to remain in the competition. Although the Blue and Yellows got off to a flying start with a win at PSV, they then suffered two 0-4 defeats in front of their own fans against Newcastle and Inter Milan. It was also unhelpful that Royale recently lost their coach.
Sebastien Pocognoli, who led the team to its first title in 90 years last season, was poached by AS Monaco, which is obviously a painful loss for the Brussels club. His successor, David Hubert, has big shoes to fill and has not yet managed to do so, at least on the international stage. Given this situation, we are predicting more than 2.5 goals from the hosts in the match between Atletico Madrid and Union Saint Gilloise.
Atletico Madrid vs. Union Saint Gilloise Prediction AI
AI has also looked at the match in the Spanish capital and found value in the odds on the number of goals. It estimates the expected goals value at 3.26. The Atletico Madrid vs. Union Saint Gilloise AI prediction is therefore for more than 3.0 goals (Asian handicap).
Atletico Madrid – Statistics & current form
Last season’s third-placed team in the Spanish top flight still has room for improvement in the current edition of the Champions League. After three rounds of matches, coach Diego Simeone’s team has only one win to its name. However, the two other defeats need to be put into perspective.
They were both away games, and with Arsenal and the British champions from Liverpool, the tasks were extremely difficult. Now the hosts face a much easier opponent, and the 5-1 win against Frankfurt has already shown that the Madrid team may not be able to keep up with the absolute top European teams at the moment, but they can be powerful against easier opponents.
With seven goals conceded so far, the defense in particular has not been performing well. However, we now expect improvement: the visitors’ offense has potential and has the best record in the domestic Jupiler League, but in an international context it is comparatively weak. This was already evident in the recent two defeats without scoring against Inter and Newcastle.
Will Atletico win without conceding a goal?
Against this backdrop, the odds for an Atletico Madrid home win to nil against Union Saint Gilloise are also recommended.
The Argentine is the club’s top scorer with seven goals in eleven appearances in La Liga, and he has also scored once for the eleven-time Spanish champions in the Champions League. He continues to be in good form, as his goal in the dress rehearsal against Sevilla last weekend showed.
The hosts also have home advantage on their side. Since a defeat against Barcelona in the semi-finals of last year’s Copa del Rey in April, they have not lost on their own turf in any competition (10-1-0).
Union Saint Gilloise – Statistics & current form
The players from Duden Park celebrated a historic title last spring. They won the national championship for the first time since 1935. Thanks to this victory, the footballers from Joseph Marien Stadium also secured their ticket to the Champions League. However, this level seems a little too high for the Brussels team.
The last two defeats were particularly heavy, with four goals conceded and none scored. In light of these results, we believe that the Atletico Madrid vs. Union Saint Gilloise betting odds for a home win with at least a two-goal difference are equally attractive.
Another factor in favor of a clean sheet for the hosts is that the reigning Jupiler League champions’ top striker, David Promise, is currently out of form. The Canadian scored 19 goals in the Belgian top flight last season and also made an efficient start to the new season, but the striker has been off form for several weeks now. The 24-year-old has scored in only one of his last six games in the Jupiler League and Champions League.
Argentinian prefers to score away from home
The visitors’ hopes are therefore currently pinned on Kevin Mac Allister. The Argentine has scored in each of his last three European away games, including on the first matchday in the away win at PSV Eindhoven.
Atletico Madrid – Union Saint Gilloise Head-to-head record
The teams are facing each other for the first time. In Atletico Madrid’s debut against Union Saint Gilloise, the odds clearly favor the 1974 World Cup winners from Spain.
The Spaniards have also won only two of their last six games against Belgian teams on the European stage (2-2-2) and are winless in their last three games (0-2-1). Furthermore, Madrid has failed to score in three consecutive Champions League games against Belgian teams – all of them between December 2018 and October 2022 against Club Brugge (0-2-1).
Atletico Madrid – Union Saint Gilloise Tip
For the match between Atletico Madrid and Union Saint Gilloise, the prediction is for more than two goals by the home team. Admittedly, the hosts have so far remained lackluster in the Champions League with three points after as many rounds, but this was also due to a very difficult schedule.
With the Champions League debutants from Belgium, Simeone’s team now faces a much easier task. The visitors have recently disappointed, especially from a defensive point of view.
Against Newcastle and Inter Milan, two teams of the same caliber as Atletico, Royale conceded four goals in each game. The defeats even came at home, which is why we now expect at least a similar number of goals against for coach David Hubert’s team in the away game.
The Atletico Madrid vs. Union Saint Gilloise tip is underpinned by the strong home offense, which scored the most goals in front of their own fans in La Liga after Barcelona, and the recent change of coach for the visitors. This was not voluntary on the part of the visitors, but was due to Monaco poaching him. As a result, Royale has now also lost its successful coach, and this departure further weakens the Brussels team.
The statistics and the Atletico Madrid vs. Union Saint Gilloise betting odds also give the visitors little hope: this is the 23rd time that a Belgian team has played away against a Spanish opponent on European soil, and only two of the previous 22 games ended in victory for the footballers from the kingdom (2-6-14).
