Molde-Club Brugge is a match valid for the first leg of the Conference League round of 16 and is played Thursday at 6:45 p.m.: live TV, probable formations, predictions.
In the play-offs for access to the round of 16 Molde easily managed to get rid of Legia Warsaw, beaten 3-2 in the first leg and then even 3-0 in the return. Two surprising results, if we take into account the fact that the Norwegians, prior to the double challenge with the Poles, had not played an official match for about two months.
The Eliteserien, the Scandinavian country’s top league, will not start again until April, and in that time Erling Moe’s men have played only friendlies and a few matches in the Atlantic Cup, a competition involving several teams from tournaments in the Nordic countries that stop in winter for obvious climatic reasons. Molde, however, showed against Legia that they are in excellent condition from a fitness standpoint and will also have to watch out for Club Brugge, their next opponent in the round of 16. The Belgians in the fall had topped their group by finishing almost with a full score, with 16 points won out of 18 available, just ahead of another Norwegian team, Bodo/Glimt, which was later eliminated in the play-offs at the end of a thrilling double-header with Ajax.
Another Norwegian for Club Brugge
Molde, then, will have few secrets for the Nerazzurri, who, by the way, are coached by a Norwegian coach, Ronny Deila, who is aware of what are the Blå-hvit’s strengths and weaknesses.
Club Brugge is currently only third in the Belgian Pro League, 20 points behind the leading Union Saint-Gilloise. Last weekend it overwhelmed Genk 3-0 at home, but in the previous three matches it had suffered two defeats between the league and national cup against the two teams currently ahead of it in the standings (Anderlecht and USG). Molde, on the other hand, prepared for the match with the Nerazzurri by playing a friendly with Rosenborg, which ended 1-1.
The prediction
Restricted to underestimate Molde after the surprising double success with Legia. So we expect a balanced match, in which both teams should score. Watch out for striker Guldbrandsen, who scored four times between the first leg and the second leg with the Poles: the former Salzburg man could repeat.
The probable lineups of Molde-Club Brugge
MOLDE (3-5-2): Petersen; K. Haugen, Hagelskjaer, E. Haugen; Linnes, Hestad, Daehli, Kaasa, Lovik; Eikrem, Gulbrandsen.
CLUB BRUGGE (4-3-3): Jackers; Odoi, Ordonez, Mechele, Cuyper; Vetlesen, Onyedika, Vanaken; Olsen, Jutgla, Skoras.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-2
