AZ Alkmaar vs Slovan Bratislava prediction: EUROPE: Conference League – League phase betting tips on match 2025-10-22 19:00.
[p]Two sides who suffered matchday one defeats in the UEFA Conference League meet here as AZ Alkmaar host Slovan Bratislava.[/p]
[p]Match News and Current Form[/p]
[p]Arriving on the back of a stirring 2-0 win over Ajax to leapfrog them in the Eredivisie into third place, AZ will be full of confidence despite losing 4-0 to AEK Larnaca in their opening league phase fixture in the Conference League this season. That scoreline may have come as a shock after Maarten Martens’ men flew through their qualifiers to reach this point, and it means that a positive result is important here if they want to give themselves a good chance of replicating previous campaigns in UEFA competition which have seen them progress to the knockout phase three times in their last four attempts. [/p]
[p]Slovan have also been showing promising form, with their own matchday-one loss sandwiched between pairs of wins, including a 2-0 victory over Spartak Trnava last weekend. That means they are just a point off first place in Slovakia’s top flight with two games in hand, although they could do with improving on their recent European exploits, with that 2-1 defeat in the Conference League to Strasbourg preceded by losing all eight of their league phase encounters in the UEFA Champions League last season. [/p]
[p]Head-to-Head History[/p]
[p]This will be a first-ever meeting between the sides, with Slovan having lost the only two previous games that they have played against Dutch opposition. [/p]
[p]Hot Stats and Streaks[/p]
[p]AZ are unbeaten in their last ten home matches in UEFA competition (W9, D1). [/p]
[p]AZ have conceded just twice in their last six European home games. [/p]
[p]Slovan are on a five-match unbeaten streak away from home (W4, D1). [/p]
[p]Slovan have struck first in each of their last three away games and have scored 2+ goals in each of their last six such matches. [/p]
[p]Key Players to Watch and Missing Players[/p]
[p]Sven Mijnans has three assists across his last three home outings for AZ – each of which has arrived in the first half. Slovan’s Robert Mak could also have an impact relatively early on here, having scored each of his last four goals before the break. [/p]
[p]Centre-back Alexandre Penetra is suspended for AZ following his second-minute red card in Larnaca, while Slovan do not appear to have any new absentees. Â [/p]
[p]For all the latest team news, please check the Flashscore match centre.[/p]
[p]Betting Analysis[/p]
[p]A sensible pick would be to back an in-form AZ to secure a win by at least two goals. [/p]
[p][i]Author: Luke Bridle[/i][/p]