Under 2.5 Goals Predictions

Villarreal’s form in the Champions League has been the complete opposite of their domestic endeavours, with most matches ending in low-scoring affairs. In fact, under 2.5 goals has landed in three of their last five Champions League encounters.

Benfica went under 2.5 goals in three out of the last four games and kept a clean sheet in two out of those four matches. Napoli went under 2.5 goals in three of the past four matches and in the past three road matches. Additionally, both teams struggled to score in the Champions League.

Utrecht have scored one or zero goals in seven of the past nine matches - 0.78 per game. They also struggled offensively in the EL, scoring just two goals in five rounds. So, expecting a great offensive display is unrealistic, especially since Nottingham had five clean sheets in the past ten games. Also, Nottingham went under 2.5 goals in six out of the last six road games.

Both these teams scored only seven goals in the first five Europa League matches. Also, Celtic scored two goals in their last two games, while AS Roma are goalless in the same span. With those trends, it seems unlikely that we will see more than two goals in the upcoming clash. 

Angers have fini‌shed unde​r the 2‌.5‍ bar‍rier in f‌our of their previous five outi​ngs, an⁠d thei⁠r home matches tend to grow cagey as soon as they get the first goal. Nante​s hav‌e‍ also been p‍ulled int⁠o‌ low-scoring ga​mes on the roa​d, with four of their last​ five away tr⁠ip‌s endin⁠g under th⁠e line⁠.

Both these teams are low-scoring. Interestingly, both sides scored ten goals in 14 league matches. Also, they have similar xG stats so far (Lecce have 1.10 and Pisa 1.15). It will be surprising if we see more than two goals on Friday night at Stadio Via del Mare.