Two clubs in the bottom half of the UEFA Europa League (UEL) standings will be searching for their first league phase win when AZ Alkmaar host Hapoel Be’er Sheva.
Match News and Current Form
All of the momentum of Alkmaar’s six-game winning streak came to a grinding halt when they lost 1-0 away to Sunderland on matchday one. They’ve had a tough run either side of the international break, getting back into action with a 2-0 loss at 16-time Eredivisie champions Feyenoord, so a return to AFAS Stadion will be most appreciated. Not only are AZ unbeaten at home in 17 games across all competitions (W12, D5), albeit mostly Conference League games and Eredivisie matches against lower-half opposition, the Dutch club are on a 13-game unbeaten run at home in major European competition (W10, D3), including league phase wins over Fenerbahçe and Roma in the 2024/25 UEL.
Making their first UEL main draw appearance since 2020/21, Hapoel Be’er Sheva failed to convert their 15 shots into a goal against Dinamo Zagreb at their temporary home venue in Bucharest, ultimately drawing 0-0. Whilst they can draw positives from keeping five clean sheets in their last eight major European matches, having not done so in any of their 17 prior to that, three of those five were 0-0 draws, including in the group stage of the 2022/23 Conference League from which they failed to advance. Dropping points at their temporary home base could prove crucial unless they can begin improving a record of just two wins from their last 13 continental games in an opposition country (D7, L5).
Head-to-Head History
This will be the maiden H2H. AZ have faced Israeli sides four times in the UEL between 2013/14 and 2016/17 (W2, D1, L1), whilst Hapoel’s record against Dutch clubs (L4) carries little weight given the most recent match was in 1997.
Hot Stats and Streaks
AZ’s last four competitive matches featured 2.5 goals.
AZ kept a clean sheet in ten of their last 12 continental wins.
Nine of Hapoel’s last 14 continental games in an opposition country produced under 2.5 goals.
Hapoel scored in six of their last seven losses in all competitions.
Key Players to Watch and Missing Players
Mexx Meerdink is AZ’s only goalscorer since the previous UNL matchday, with his double against Serbia leaving him on a five-game winning streak when scoring for club or country. Igor Zlatanović missed a big chance on matchday one but may not be far from redemption, having scored in three consecutive UCL qualifiers earlier this season.
Stije Resink appears to be absent for AZ, as does Dan Biton for the visitors.
For all the latest team news, please check the Flashscore match centre.
Betting Analysis
With the home side keeping plenty of clean sheets at home and in continental wins, backing AZ Alkmaar to win with a clean sheet could be a good option.
Author: Aaron Murphy