Cercle Brugge vs Antwerp Prediction

This weekend sees MD2 of the new Belgian Pro League campaign arrive, as two sides with a point to prove clash on Sunday. They finished in contrasting positions last season, but there’s a fresh start for both Cercle Brugge and Antwerp this term.

Brugge lost 1-0 away to Standard Liege, while Antwerp were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw against Mouscron. So, will either side manage to record their first win of the campaign here? Read my match preview, for the correct score predictions and best betting tips ahead of this fixture.

Cercle Brugge KSV vs Antwerp Betting Tips

Samuel Bastien’s strike, ten minutes after half-time, meant Cercle Brugge started the new season the same way they finished last – with a slender defeat. After an important four-match winning streak was ended by rivals and champions Club Brugge on March 7, they narrowly avoided relegation.

Under new management with highly-rated Englishman Paul Clement taking charge this summer, they’ll want to avoid languishing near the bottom again. He’ll need to get increased productivity out of players like Kylian Hazard, Dino Hotic while shoring up their defence too.

They spent £2m on Brazilian youngster Vitinho two years ago, yet the 21-year-old didn’t feature at all last season. He’s returned to full training now and is among those to keep an eye on, considering their investment.

Antwerp meanwhile, finished in the Europa League qualification places (4th) and narrowly missed out on Champions League football last term. After Lior Refaelov’s penalty gave them the lead, they only had themselves to blame when Marko Bakic equalised for Mouscron.

It’ll be interesting to see how they fare in this one, considering their vastly superior H2H record (6 wins, 3 draws, 1 loss).

Cercle Brugge KSV vs Antwerp Correct Score Predictions

Cercle are still a team in transition and under Clement, results have been fairly mixed since his appointment last month.

They won just two of their six friendlies and lost to Standard Liege – nothing to be ashamed of – but are rightly underdogs here. As a result, I’m predicting a narrow Antwerp victory.