Real Sociedad vs Ajax prediction: EUROPE: Europa League – League phase betting tips on match 2024-11-27 20:00.
[p]Itâs fair to say Real Sociedadâs UEFA Europa League (UEL) campaign hasnât exactly gone to plan so far, with the Spanish side languishing in 25th spot ahead of matchday five. One caveat to their slow start perhaps comes in the fact theyâve played three of their four league phase games to date on the road, although losing their only home game 2-1 to Anderlecht suggests returning to familiar surroundings wonât necessarily bring success.[/p]
[p]Ajax coming to town for a first-ever H2H may help bring the good times back though, as Sociedad are unbeaten in four prior meetings with Dutch opposition (W2, D2), winning both home games in that run âto nilâ. Home struggles have been a long-standing theme for Sociedad though, who have lost six of their last nine outings at the Reale Arena (W2, D1), while they stand on the brink of losing three home games in a row in major European competition for the first time ever. [/p]
[p]At the complete other end of the UEL success spectrum, Ajax come into matchday five sat second and looking good value to advance straight to the round of 16. Domestically, theyâre well off the pace in the Eredivisie, which is hard to believe for a side who are unbeaten in an incredible 16 games in all competitions (W13, D3), while the fact that 12 of those wins saw Ajax score 2+ goals shows theyâve mostly been convincing too. [/p]
[p]That could all be about to come crashing down around them in Spain though, as Ajax have won just two of their last 12 away games against Spanish opposition (D2, L8). Encouragingly, those two wins came across their last three visits, and with an unbeaten run away from home in the UEL this season (inc qualifiers – W4, D1), they should travel with a degree of confidence. [/p]
[p]Players to watch: Sociedad will hope for a Takefusa Kubo impact as heâs opened the scoring in wins âto nilâ with his three club goals this season. The hostsâ hopes of winning could be in tatters if Brian Brobbey nets, as heâs also scored three times this season, all three of which also came in clean sheet wins for Ajax. [/p]
[p]Hot stat: Only one of Sociedadâs last six games in all competitions saw both teams score, but each of their four UEL games saw goals at both ends. [/p]
[p][i]Written by Chris Wilson[/i][/p]