Molde travel to Club Brugge on Thursday for the second leg of their Europa Conference League game, and this is one of the more finely balanced ties of the eight we have. It's 2-1 to Molde on aggregate, after a very even first game, but with home advantage behind them, Club Brugge are the favourites to qualify from this game.
Club Brugge Form GuideAn injury time goal for Molde was a hammer blow to Club Brugge at the time, but when you look at the bigger picture, it's not as bad as it would have felt. They're back home now, in familiar conditions, and are behind by just one goal, so it's still all to play for.
I thought they played well in the first game, and gave as good as they got, despite being away from home. I think they'll have more of the ball here, as Molde will sit deeper. They played on Sunday in the league at home, and won 3-1, scoring plenty to give them a nice little boost ahead of this one.
Molde Form GuideI felt that Molde needed to win the first game, and they did exactly that, even though they left it late. They did well in that game, but this is a different proposition going away, and I also expect that Molde will be a little more defensive here, given they are away, and a draw would be enough for them to qualify.
One advantage that Molde will have here is that they come as the fresher team, they've only just started playin regularly again due to the timing of their season in Norway, and their game on Sunday was cancelled, so they'll look to use their legs here, I'm sure.
Match PredictionI am looking forward to this game, I think it is set up nicely. Molde will fancy their chances, but the make up of the game could go against them. I expect them to sit a little deeper, and try to soak up pressure, but inviting Club Brugge on is not a good thing to do. I think Brugge win this one on the night, that's my tip for the game.
