Club Brugge v AaB preview
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Article summary
Three defeats away from home in the group stage does not augur well for Aalborg BK, who, having never previously won in Belgium, have a 3-1 deficit to overturn at Club Brugge KV.
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Club Brugge KV are on track to progress through a two-legged knockout phase tie in UEFA competition for the first time in over a decade unless Aalborg BK can turn around their miserable away form in the competition to cause a shock.
What they say
Club Brugge coach Michel Preud'homme: "We're still number one in Belgium and we hope to qualify for the Europa League round of 16, but we're not there yet. In football it's never finished until the final whistle, and in Europe that is only after the second leg. So we have to fully focus in order to qualify. The opponents will always try to achieve something."
AaB coach Kent Nielsen: "We're aware of the situation. Club Brugge deserved their result in the first leg, there is nothing that can be said against that. Now it is up to us to be very efficient in this second leg. First of all we now have to get a result here and try to win the game. Then we we will see how things develop and whether we deserve qualification."
Previous meetings
• The sides met for the first time in UEFA competition in the first leg. Obbi Oularé, Lior Refaelov and a Kenneth Emil Petersen own goal powered Club Brugge into a three-goal lead in Denmark before Nicklas Helenius's 71st-minute penalty gave AaB a glimmer of hope in the tie.
• Club Brugge's home record against Danish sides is not brilliant (W2 D2 L2), but they can take some encouragement from having beaten FC København 4-0 away in this season's UEFA Europa League group stage.
• AaB failed to win in their only previous games in Belgium (D1 L1), both in the now-mothballed UEFA Intertoto Cup.
Form guide
• Club Brugge are unbeaten in six European home games (W3 D3)
• AaB's away form this season tailed off dramatically after a 2-0 success at GNK Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round; they have lost all four of their games on the road since, conceding 14 goals and scoring none.
• Club Brugge have not won a springtime UEFA competition double-header in four attempts, since eliminating Debreceni VSC in the third round of the 2003/04 UEFA Cup.
• AaB last reached this springtime stage in 2008/09, beating RC Deportivo La Coruña en route to a penalty shoot-out loss to Manchester City FC in the round of 16. That remains their most successful European campaign.
Trivia and links
• On-loan AaB midfielder Thomas Enevoldsen knows Belgian football well, having been on the books at KV Mechelen since 2012.
• Club Brugge are one of five sides to have progressed from the third qualifying round to the round of 32 along with BSC Young Boys, FC Dinamo Moskva. PSV Eindhoven and Torino FC.
• AaB (Denmark) are one of seven reigning domestic champions in the last 32, along with Legia Warszawa (Poland), Olympiacos FC (Greece), FC Salzburg (Austria), RSC Anderlecht (Belgium), Celtic FC (Scotland) and AFC Ajax (Netherlands).
The coaches
• A goalkeeper for R. Standard de Liège, Mechelen, SL Benfica and Belgium, for whom he earned 58 caps, Michel Preud'homme has occupied the Club Brugge helm since September 2013. As a coach, he has claimed league titles in Belgium (Standard, 2007/08) and Saudi Arabia (al-Shabab FC, 2011/12) in addition to the Belgian Cup (KAA Gent, 2009/10) and the Dutch Cup (FC Twente, 2010/11).
• Kent Nielsen led AaB to a domestic double in 2013/14 after taking command in 2010. Having turned out – like his father and brother – for Bronshøj BK, Nielsen won titles with Brøndby IF and played abroad with Aston Villa FC. Capped 54 times, he coached AGF Aarhus, AC Horsens and Brøndby before assuming his current role.
