Club Brugge v KV Mechelen

Club Brugge vs Mechelen Preview

Friday night also brings us the start of a new Belgian top flight season and features this upcoming clash between hosts, Club Brugge, and visitors, Mechelen, in this First Division A curtain-raiser at Jan Breydelstadion with both teams no doubt keen to produce a positive start to their respective domestic top flight campaigns.

Club Brugge lost 2-1 to Union St Gilloise in last week's Belgian Super Cup but the upcoming hosts will still feel confident about their chances in this fixture as they produced a pretty solid looking pre-season in recent weeks.

Club Brugge were crowned the Belgian champions once again as they finished top of the Championship Group table after the league split in two and since their final day 0-0 draw in the local derby with Cercle Brugge, the hosts went unbeaten during their subsequent four pre-season friendlies.

Results during this period included a 1-1 draw away from home at Dutch outfit PSV and a rousing 3-0 home win against English Championship club, Norwich City, while results in the Belgian top flight saw Club Brugge end the season with a solid looking 10-match unbeaten run which included picking up no fewer than seven wins along the way.

Visitors Mechelen produced a creditable eighth place finish at the end of the regular First Division A campaign which saw them progress through to the Europa Conference League play-offs but they could only finish runners-up behind a strong Gent outfit.

Nevertheless, Mechelen ended last season's campaign on a positive note as Besnik Hasi's side won their final two league matches on the trot, beating Westerlo 2-0 away from home before recording a 3-2 home win against Standard Liege.

Mechelen have also enjoyed a pretty successful pre-season period as well, as the visitors have been handed just one loss in their five warm-up games which came in the form of a 2-0 loss away at Olympiakos but also included picking up wins against the likes of Oudenaarde, Beerschot and Heist, along with a useful looking 1-1 draw away at French Ligue 1 outfit, Lille.

Recent results away from home though in the Belgian First Division A have been something of a mixed bag for Mechelen as the visitors have collected two wins, drawn once but also lost three of their last six outings on the road, so this looks like being a tough assignment for Besnik Hasi's side as they prepare for this upcoming clash with last season's title winners.

Club Brugge v Mechelen Verdict

Club Brugge are unbeaten in their last five meetings against Mechelen, picking up three wins in the process and it's interesting to note that four of these last five meetings have not produced goals for both sides.

Therefore, our main bet will be BTTS No @ 1.95

Other side bets worth considering:

Club Brugge win & BTTS No @ 2.37

Correct Score: Club Brugge 2-0 @ 7.50