Kick-off: 1745, 20/04/2023
Stadium: AZ Stadion
TV: BT Sport
AZ Alkmaar have given themselves a mountain to climb after losing 2-0 at Anderlecht in the Europa Conference League quarter-finals.
However, the Dutch outfit hit form with a 3-0 Eredivisie win at Fortuna Sittard on Sunday, whereas their opponents were thrashed 5-2 at Genk.
We’re happy to take 73/100 for the Cheeseheads to prevail in the return fixture for our initial AZ Alkmaar vs Anderlecht prediction.
AZ buoyed by Eredivisie victory
Anderlecht went ahead on home turf when Michael Murillo headed in an Anders Dreyer cross with just shy of 22 minutes on the clock.
In the second half, Francis Amuzu teed up Majeed Ashimeru on the edge of the box and he fired in a clinical finish to double the advantage.
Alkmaar carved out a decent chance late on but Milos Kerkez sent his cross tamely into the side netting.
Sven Mijnans blazed another opportunity wide for AZ and midfielder Jordy Clasie admitted: “We had a collective off day.
“Our passes weren’t clean and we lacked creativity. But nothing is lost yet.
“We need to be focused in Alkmaar and maybe if we’re at the top of our game we can change this situation around.”
That first leg came around at a time when AZ were struggling on the domestic front, with just one point picked up from three Eredivisie fixtures.
However, the Cheeseheads found their shooting boots over the weekend, with Jens Odgaard, Milos Kerkez and Evangelos Pavlidis netting in Sittard.
Having impressed during the group stage before upsetting Lazio in the last round, we’re hoping Alkmaar are now back on song.
Looking at the AZ Alkmaar vs Anderlecht odds, Pavlidis scored in both legs versus Lazio and is 7/2 to break the deadlock here.
Mixed campaign for Anderlecht
Anderlecht’s Jan Vertonghen made his 130th European appearance in the opening encounter and was delighted with the outcome.
The former Tottenham defender said: “We did exactly what the coach asked of us and it worked.
“Before this match, everyone would have settled for a 2-0 win. It’s a good position to be in for the return match.”
The purple and whites did well to beat Villarreal in the last round, winning 1-0 in Spain after a 1-1 home draw.
However, they were beaten twice by West Ham in their pool and only scraped past Ludogorets of Bulgaria on penalties.
Sunday’s thrashing at Genk left them 10th of 18 in Belgium’s top division and we feel they are worth taking on in Holland.
Let’s finish off our AZ Alkmaar vs Anderlecht betting tips by taking 4/1 for a home win by any two-goal margin, which would take the tie into extra-time.
Additional stats
Last result:
Fortuna Sittard 0-3 AZ ALKMAAR – Jens Odgaard, Milos Kerkez, Evangelos Pavlidis
Genk 5-2 ANDERLECHT – Islam Slimani, Anders Dreyer
Head-to-head: Anderlecht 2-0 AZ Alkmaar, Anderlecht 0-1 AZ Alkmaar, AZ Alkmaar 1-0 Anderlecht
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