Lugano vs Union Saint-​Gilloise Prediction: Will the Belgian club reach the group stage of the Europa League?

On their home field, Union confidently beat Lugano 2:0. The return meeting in Switzerland will not bring a sensation, and will the Belgian club reach the group stage of the Europa League?

Lugano got directly into the Europa League playoff round, finishing third in the last season of the Swiss championship. In the new national championship season, the team, coached by Mattia Croci-Torti, suffered only one defeat - 0:3 from Zurich. In addition, Lugano beat Lausanne Ouchy (3:0), St. Gallen (1:0), and Iverdon (6:1), and in the Swiss Cup, the Bianconeri beat a modest Gunzwil (7:0).

Union has only one defeat so far this season, and it was also a devastating one - a 0:4 defeat at the hands of Mechelen. In other matches, the bronze medalist of the Belgian championship last season achieved victories - 2:0 over Anderlecht, 1:0 over Standard, 5:1 over Heverlee Louvain.

In the first game with Lugano, Union scored a goal in each of the halves, distinguished Dennis Eckert and Kasper Terho, and did not miss. However, in terms of play, the Swiss certainly didn't play for a two-goal defeat—14:10 in shots and 7:6 in shots on goal in favor of Union ex-Genoa coach Alexandre Blessin.

Lugano has not lost on its field for a long time and did not lose the game to Union in the first match, and that is not to say that they are too inferior to the Belgians in class. So, the odds on the hosts in the upcoming game look overvalued. Let's bet on Lugano and both teams to score - no.