Preview: Royal Antwerp vs. Eintracht Frankfurt - prediction, team news, lineups

Royal Antwerp will look to get their first points on the board in Group D of the Europa League on Thursday when they host Eintracht Frankfurt.

The visitors drew their opening fixture against Fenerbahce, while Olympiacos currently sit top after beating the hosts in the first game.

Match preview

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Antwerp conceded a late goal in their opening Europa League contest against Olympiacos in order to lose the game, despite the fact Mbwana Samatta had drawn them level earlier in the match.

They are the only team within their group without a point at the moment, which is something that Brian Priske will want to set right before it is too late.

The Belgian outfit defeated AC Omonia in the playoffs to earn the right to compete in the European competition this season, even though they lost the first leg 4-2.

Antwerp fought back in the second game, winning the match 2-0 in order to force the cup tie to penalties where they were victorious, putting them into the Europa League.

Priske's team come into this game with great momentum after winning their last four matches in the Belgian Pro League, including victories against two teams around them in the table.

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They dominated against Genk with an emphatic 4-2 victory last week, even though they finished the match with 10 men due to Ritchie De Laet being sent off.

Antwerp then followed it up with a 2-1 win against Union Saint-Gilloise, with two goals in the space of 10 minutes helping to earn the three points, with the Belgian club looking to now put that momentum into the Europa League.

Frankfurt have not made quite as strong a start to their respective season in the Bundesliga, having failed to defeat anyone in the league during their opening six matches, with Oliver Glasner still searching for his first victory in charge of the club.

Even though they sit one point above the relegation zone at the moment, the German team have only lost once so far in the division, with the team having drawn five of their matches.

Frankfurt drew their first game in the Europa League as well, where they came from behind against Fenerbahce with a goal from Sam Lammers helping them secure a point.

However, Glasner will need to tweak things in order to get his team to start turning their performances into victories, which is something that they will need to start on Thursday, and could possibly see them go top, depending on the other result in the group.

Team News

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Antwerp will be able to bring full-back De Laet back into the starting XI for this match after he missed their victory on Sunday as he served a suspension, which will be a big boost to their defensive options.

The team is without Sander Coopman still, with the attacking midfielder continuing to rehabilitate from his cruciate ligament injury, while Samuel Vines is also out of action due to a fractured collarbone.

Frankfurt were missing both Christopher Lenz and Sebastian Rode due to injuries, and they are likely to miss out again this Thursday in the Europa League.

Glasner was boosted by having Erik Durm available for the recent draw against FC Koln, although the left-back was unable to finish the match.

This could lead to Jorge Mere starting the game, as he was the man to replace him on Saturday, although it remains to be seen whether or not the first choice full-back is fit enough to play.

Royal Antwerp possible starting lineup:
Butez; Buta, Almeida, Dessoleil, De Laet; Gerkens, Verstraete; Miyoshi, Samatta, Nainggolan; Frey

Eintracht Frankfurt possible starting lineup:
Trapp; Mere, Ndicka, Hinteregger, Chandler; Sow, Jakic; Hauge, Borre, Kostic; Lammers

We say: Royal Antwerp 2-0 Eintracht Frankfurt

Even though Royal Antwerp are currently bottom of Group D, they are more likely to walk away with three points on Thursday, purely because of the brilliant form they are in.

The visitors have been struggling to win games this season, lacking the ruthless edge to turn their draws into three points, which is a problem them that the Belgian club have not had.