- 1 Sporting CP vs LASK: Suárez in form, Zalazar missing, and a LASK side that scores wherever it goes
- 2 Sporting CP: unbeaten in the league, two wins from two in Europe, and a rotation coming
- 3 LASK: seven conceded in Europe, but goals in 17 straight away league games
- 4 Free Champions League Prediction: Sporting CP vs LASK
- 5 About our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About visuals
Sporting CP vs LASK: Suárez in form, Zalazar missing, and a LASK side that scores wherever it goes 
Luis Suárez has scored in each of Sporting’s two Champions League games this season: a penalty in the 3-1 win over Galatasaray in September and the opener in last Tuesday’s 2-0 win at Lens. He also has seven league goals, and before the trip to France he’d scored in seven matches in a row. He’s the main reason Sporting go into Wednesday’s game against LASK, kick-off 20:00 UK time at the José Alvalade, with six points and a place among the league-phase leaders.
Rodrigo Zalazar, who scored a free kick against Galatasaray and the third goal in the 3-1 win at Braga, has a thigh strain and is out. Zeno Debast came back from Belgium duty with a muscle problem, Nuno Santos is a long-term absentee, and Ibrahima Ba hasn’t played since 22 August.
Rui Borges also has to plan around the fixture list: Sporting host Académico Viseu on Sunday, play Marítimo in the League Cup two days later and travel to Casa Pia on 30 October, and the Portuguese press expects heavy rotation against LASK. Sporting didn’t play at the weekend, and the squad was given two days off.
LASK arrive with no points from two games and seven goals conceded. They lost 1-0 at AEK Athens on matchday one, to a Razvan Marin free kick, and then 6-3 at home to Liverpool last Wednesday, a game in which they were 3-0 down at half-time. On Saturday Dietmar Kühbauer made six changes and his side won 4-0 at Austria Lustenau.
The previous meetings between the clubs favour the Austrians. In the 2019/20 Europa League group stage Sporting won 2-1 in Lisbon and LASK won 3-0 in Linz, and in October 2020 LASK won 4-1 at the Alvalade, again in the Europa League.
The bookmakers ignore that history and price Sporting between 1.22 and 1.27. Given LASK’s defending in Europe, that seems fair. What I think the market underrates is LASK’s ability to score, even in defeat, against a Sporting side that will look different from the one that won in Lens.
Sporting CP: unbeaten in the league, two wins from two in Europe, and a rotation coming 
Sporting opened the Champions League by beating Galatasaray 3-1 after going behind to a sixth-minute Gonçalo Inácio own goal, with Geny Catamo, Suárez and Zalazar scoring. At Lens, Suárez scored on 22 minutes from an Irankunda pass and Issa Doumbia added the second around the 75th minute.
The league form has been steady rather than spectacular. Sporting are unbeaten in Liga Portugal, with draws at Famalicão and at home to Arouca alongside a 2-0 win over Nacional, and the 3-1 win at Braga on 9 October put them provisionally second, three points behind Porto. They went behind in that game too, to a Rui Silva own goal, before Suárez headed in Irankunda’s cross and Zalazar added a late third.
Catamo has four league assists and a Champions League goal, Flávio Gonçalves has three league goals, and Fotis Ioannidis has two goals and two assists. That depth is what Borges is counting on if he rests players on Wednesday.
The Portuguese sports dailies expect Vagiannidis to come in at right-back, Silas Andersen to push for a midfield place and Flávio Gonçalves or Jesse Derry to feature out wide. Kaique is set to keep his place in goal ahead of Rui Silva.
The defence has conceded once in two Champions League games, the own goal against Galatasaray. Debast’s absence and a rotated back four take away some of that security, and the Alvalade pitch, which has been recovering from a fungal problem, is expected to be ready in time but adds one more variable.
Suárez, likely to start regardless, has at least nine goals in all competitions, and the gap between his finishing and anything else in this fixture is the clearest edge Sporting have.
no renewal
Free for 2 weeks.
LASK: seven conceded in Europe, but goals in 17 straight away league games 
The Liverpool game was a mess for LASK until the hour. Araujo scored on 22 minutes, Barcola twice before half-time, and Frimpong added a fourth six minutes after the break. Ljubicic pulled one back on 63 minutes, Barcola completed his hat-trick three minutes later and Koumas made it 6-1, before Florian Flecker scored twice in the last 16 minutes.
That late response is typical of a side that keeps scoring even when things go wrong. LASK had scored in 16 consecutive away league games before Saturday, and the 4-0 at Lustenau made it 17. Kalajdzic opened the scoring on 56 minutes, Adeniran added the second, and Christoph Lang scored twice late on, one from the penalty spot.
Lang is the domestic scorer, with seven league goals, which puts him joint top of the Austrian scoring chart. Samuel Adeniran has five league goals but has had 17 shots in the Champions League without scoring, and Flecker has three goals in the competition, two of them against Liverpool. Bogarde and Moses Usor have three league assists each.
The domestic picture is more uneven than the Lustenau score suggests. LASK won their first five league games, then took one point from the next three, including a 0-2 home defeat to Rapid on 11 October, which ended a 16-game scoring run in the league. They’re second, five points behind Rapid, with Salzburg next at home on Sunday.
Captain Sascha Horvath missed the Liverpool game with a thigh problem but started on Saturday, and his return matters: he has created 12 chances in the Champions League this season. George Bello and Usor both missed the Liverpool game, and their status is unclear.
Kühbauer is expected to go back to a more defensive shape in Lisbon, with five at the back and Adeniran on his own up front. Their three league-phase goals this season all came in the space of 15 minutes against Liverpool, after the game had already gone.
Probable lineup Sporting CP: Kaique; Fresneda, Eduardo Quaresma, Gonçalo Inácio, Maxi Araújo; João Simões, Doumbia, Altimira; Irankunda, Suárez, Geny Catamo
Probable lineup LASK: Jungwirth; Dibango, Andrade, Alemão, Mbuyamba, Jørgensen; Lang, Schöpf, Bogarde, Danek; Adeniran
Free Champions League Prediction: Sporting CP vs LASK
Our prediction: Both teams to score @ 1.80
Sporting should win, and at 1.22 to 1.27 there’s no value in saying so. Goals at both ends are a better bet. LASK have scored in 17 straight away league games and scored three against Liverpool, and Sporting will be without Zalazar and Debast and are expected to rotate with three more games in the following nine days.
The obstacle is Sporting’s defence, which has conceded only once in Europe, and that was an own goal, while LASK failed to score at AEK. But Lang, Flecker and Adeniran give them enough to find one chance on the break, and Horvath’s return gives them the passer they lacked against Liverpool.
A Sporting win by something like 3-1 looks the likeliest outcome, with Suárez on the scoresheet again. Both teams to score, priced around 1.80 on the exchange markets, is the pick.
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
_________
About our free predictions
- What we publish on MathOdds are analyses, nothing more. We share a view, a reading of the moment, but never a guarantee. Sport remains what it is: unpredictable. A red card, an injury, a last-minute goal, and the script changes completely.
- Let’s be clear: there is no such thing as a risk-free bet. Even when it looks “obvious”, nothing ever is. And yes, that means you can lose. It’s even inevitable at some point.
- The smartest approach is to stay reasonable. Bet small, set a budget and stick to it. Never use money you need to live on. And above all: don’t chase your losses: that rarely ends well.
- A bet should remain a game, not a job or a source of income. If it starts taking up too much space in your daily life, causes stress or frustration, take a break. And if needed, talk to a support organisation: that’s what they’re there for.
- Ultimately, responsibility lies with you. Reading our content means accepting that risk exists and will never disappear, no matter how good the analysis.
- Essential reminder: gambling is prohibited for minors and must comply with the laws of your country. Need help? Visit begambleaware.org.
No commitment from us
Our predictions carry no contractual value. They have no legal standing. In short: you cannot rely on them to claim anything if a bet doesn’t come through.
Information changes
A prediction is always based on what we know at the time of writing. But between publication and kick-off, a lineup can change, a player picks up an injury, the weather turns, and the analysis can quickly be outdated. We cannot be held responsible for that.
Your responsibility
Before placing a bet, simply check that gambling is legal in your country. If it isn’t, that’s your responsibility, not ours.
Responsible gambling
We can’t say it enough: gamble responsibly. If you’re struggling to stay in control, don’t wait to seek help.
Legal age
MathOdds content is intended for adults only. By browsing here, you confirm you meet the legal age requirement for gambling in your jurisdiction.
About visuals
The images and logos of Sporting CP and LASK on MathOdds are used solely to illustrate our articles. They do not imply any official affiliation with a federation or sports organisation, and we claim no rights over them. Those rights belong to their original owners. If any visual raises a concern, contact us and it will be removed without delay.
Leave a Reply