- 1 Viktoria Plzen vs Union Saint-Gilloise: a three-goal comeback against the Belgian co-leaders
- 2 Viktoria Plzen: nine points from six games, but an attack that is firing
- 3 Union Saint-Gilloise: 16 points from six games and five unbeaten
- 4 Europa League prediction Viktoria Plzen vs Union Saint-Gilloise
- 5 First, a word on our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling comes first
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About the visuals…
Viktoria Plzen vs Union Saint-Gilloise: a three-goal comeback against the Belgian co-leaders 
Viktoria Plzen booked their place in this league phase by overturning a three-goal deficit. Thrashed in the first leg by Red Star Belgrade, the Czech side hit back with a 5-1 win after extra time at home, taking the tie 5-4 on aggregate.
Five different scorers got on the board in that second leg. That says plenty about how this group shares the attacking load.
Union Saint-Gilloise arrive with the mirror image of that story. The Brussels club lost 6-5 on aggregate to Bodo/Glimt in Champions League qualifying, after a 3-3 draw at home and a 3-2 extra-time defeat in Norway.
Both runs had one thing in common: goals, and plenty of them. This opening Europa League matchday takes place on Thursday 17 September at 21:00 Paris time at Doosan Arena.
Their domestic league tables, though, tell a very different story. Union Saint-Gilloise sit top of the Jupiler Pro League on 16 points from six games, while Plzen are down in ninth in the Czech top flight with nine.
The 36-team league phase sends the top eight straight through to the last 16. Teams finishing ninth to 24th will have to survive an extra playoff in February.
So the two clubs head into matchday one in very different moods. Plzen are climbing back up; Union are already setting the pace at home.
Viktoria Plzen: nine points from six games, but an attack that is firing 
Plzen have picked up nine points from six Chance Liga matches. Two wins, three draws, one defeat, and a ninth-place spot that does not sit well with the club’s ambitions.
The table, though, hides a much brighter picture going forward. Over their last five games, Radoslav Kovac’s side have scored 12 and conceded seven.
Nineteen goals in five matches is nearly four a game. Plzen’s nights are rarely dull.
The 5-1 win over Red Star Belgrade in the playoff remains the clearest example of that trend. To turn around a three-goal first-leg deficit like that is no small thing.
And it wasn’t built around one hero. Five different players found the net on that night alone.
Three wins from their last five outings suggest the form is better than the league position shows. Kovac has steadied the ship just as the schedule has started to bite.
The domestic record is still the weak spot, with three draws in six league matches. The coach has not yet found the consistency his side need over the long haul.
The flip side is the seven goals conceded in their last five games. That defence leaves space in every match, and Union Saint-Gilloise are exactly the sort of side who can make it pay.
Doosan Arena has already seen Red Star and a three-goal lead come and go. Plzen’s ground has proved it can carry real weight on a European night.
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Union Saint-Gilloise: 16 points from six games and five unbeaten 
Union Saint-Gilloise are top of the Jupiler Pro League with 16 points after six rounds. Gent are level on points, with Club Brugge and Charleroi on 15.
Their last outing was a statement. Five goals at Lommel, none conceded.
That result is part of a run of four wins in their last five, with no defeats in that stretch. The Brussels side head to Czechia carrying plenty of momentum.
Their Champions League qualifying exit was no disgrace. Bodo/Glimt needed a 3-3 draw in Brussels and extra time in Norway to edge them 6-5 on aggregate.
Those two games produced 11 goals on their own. Union do not play for a stalemate; they go to score, even away from home.
The 3-3 draw at home with Bodo/Glimt remains the only real defensive slip from the Brussels side this summer. It is a reminder that this team takes risks to get goals.
This is not a club new to this level either. Their recent European campaigns have given them experience Plzen simply do not have in 2026.
The Belgian league leaves no room for error before or after this trip, with three chasers within a point or less. But the squad depth is there: the 5-0 win over Lommel came without any sign of fatigue.
The key battle will be how well the Brussels side handle the first 15 minutes. Plzen showed against Red Star that they can explode into a game at serious pace in front of their own fans.
Probable Viktoria Plzen line-up: Not available at the time of publication.
Probable Union Saint-Gilloise line-up: Not available at the time of publication.
Europa League prediction Viktoria Plzen vs Union Saint-Gilloise
Our prediction: over 2.5 goals in the match
Plzen have produced 19 goals in their last five games, 12 scored and seven conceded. None of their recent nights have followed a locked-down script.
Union Saint-Gilloise bring the same profile: a 5-0 win over Lommel, then a 3-3 and a 3-2 tie against Bodo/Glimt in Champions League qualifying. Eleven goals across that Norwegian two-leg affair is the opposite of a team looking to shut things down.
This one should clear 2.5 goals. Two attacks on the front foot, two defences that give chances away, and a first matchday where nobody is in the mood to sit back: the total should rise at Doosan Arena.
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