On Wednesday night, Gent will host Maccabi Haifa at the Ghelamco Arena for the second leg of their Europa Conference League playoff encounter. Gent will be aiming to come back from a one-goal deficit.
Last week, the Greens defeated their opponents 1-0 in the first leg, and Frantzdy Pierrot made history as the first player from Grenada to score in a European competition’s final stages.
| Top 3 markets | Best odds at bookmakers |
| Draw/Maccabi Haifa: ⚽ | 1.87 at Bet9ja |
| Under 2.5 goals: 🥅 | 1.90 at 1xbet |
| Full-time draw: ✅ | 3.6 at Sportybet |
Gent and Maccabi Haifa: Previous Games
In the Europa Conference League 1/16 Final, Gent and Maccabi Haifa will meet again at KAA Gent Arena in Belgium after a 1:0 first-leg draw on neutral ground for the Israeli champions.
In their last two seasons, Gent finished fifth in Belgium. However, they got off to a much stronger start this year and seemed to be a more formidable opponent. But since the winter break, they’ve been underwhelming, dropping six of their past seven matches across all competitions. Only a 2–0 victory against Eupen in the last round might end their losing streak.
Maccabi Haifa have won the Israeli league championship three in a row, making them the most excellent team in the country. They seem to be Israel’s top team again this season, as they are atop the league with 49 points, three more than Maccabi Tel Aviv in second place (despite playing one more game). Having only made it to the knockout stage in Europe five times before, they are not a very successful European squad. It would undoubtedly rank among the club’s most significant achievements if they were to reach the quarterfinals.
Probable Gent Lineup
Roef; Kandouss, Watanabe, Mitrovic; Samoise, De Sart, Gerkens, Brown; Hong; Tissoudali, Depoitre
Probable Maccabi Haifa Lineup
Kaiuf; Feingold, Goldberg, Seck, Cornud; Kandil, Mohamed, Show, Lesovoy; Kinda; Pierrot
Betting tips: Gent x Maccabi Haifa
Check out our predictions of the day for Gent vs. Maccabi Haifa
Prediction 1: Gent x Maccabi Haifa / Draw/Maccabi Haifa
We expect Maccabi Haifa to advance on aggregate despite Gent’s good play at home in European competition. This match may be another tight one between two clubs looking to seal a berth in the round of 16.
Prediction 2: Gent x Maccabi Haifa / Under 2.5 goals
With just four points from eight matches and seven goals scored, Gent’s play since the winter break has been dreadful. While they do not lack opportunity creation, they are failing to capitalize on the opportunities that they do have. They got 20 shots on goal and 1.65xG in the first leg against Maccabi Haifa, but they still lost 1-0.
However, in domestic tournaments, Haifa scores goals consistently but against inferior opponents. Despite playing against more vigorous opposition, they managed only three goals in six games (or half a game) in the Europa League group stage this season. Their performance in the first leg against Gent was lackluster, and a goal at KAA Gent Arena would be a significant surprise.
Based on Haifa’s weak offensive performance in the Europa League, Gent’s recent record, and the previous game, we think that under 2.5 goals is the best bet for this match.
Prediction 3: Gent x Maccabi Haifa / Full time draw
We believe the game will end in a draw. As the season progresses, the away team has kept up a respectable record, and they are now in first place in their division thanks to a remarkable winning streak. The host team, Gent, snapped their losing skid with a league win this weekend. The home team is hell-bent on riding this wave of success to ensure their continued participation in the competition. But if they want a shot against the influential visitors, they need a dramatic uptick in team play.