David Flower
Dailysports's expert
Brest
Sturm Graz
One of the first-round matches of the UEFA Champions League will take place on Thursday at the "Stade Francis-Le Blé," where Brest will face Austrian side Sturm Graz. Here's a match prediction from the Dailysports expert team.
Brest
Last season, Brest surprised many by finishing third in Ligue 1, securing their first-ever Champions League berth. This is the best result in the club’s history, but repeating such a feat this season will be challenging. Their struggles have been evident in the opening matches of the new campaign.
Over the weekend, Brest traveled to Paris and suffered a 1-3 defeat against reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain. This marked their third loss in four games. Their only points came from a convincing 4-0 win at home against Saint-Étienne. Brest currently sits in 14th place in Ligue 1, just above the relegation zone on goal difference.
Sturm Graz
Sturm Graz ended Red Bull Salzburg’s dominance last season, winning the Austrian Bundesliga by a narrow two-point margin. This allowed them to avoid the qualification rounds for the Champions League. The Austrian champions enter this European campaign on the back of a six-match winning streak across all competitions.
Sturm leads the Austrian Bundesliga but only by a slim margin of two points. Notably, they have yet to face Salzburg this season. In their most recent league match at the end of August, they defeated Tirol 4-2. Sturm also progressed through two rounds of the Austrian Cup, defeating Krems after extra time and Ried in earlier rounds.
Match Facts
- Both teams scored in Sturm Graz’s last four matches.
- Over 2.5 goals were scored in Sturm’s last four matches.
- Over 2.5 goals were scored in Brest’s last three matches.
H2H
These teams have not previously met in European competitions.
Probable Lineups
- Brest: Bizot, Lala, Chardonnet, Cardinale, Fernandez, Haidara, Castillo, Camara, Magnetti, Sima, Ajorque.
- Sturm: Scherpen, Gazibegović, Lavalée, Aiwu, Johnston, Kiteishvili, Gorenc-Stanković, Horvath, Zvonarek, Bøving, Bieryth.
Prediction
Bookmakers slightly favor the French side, with Brest's win odds at 1.93. However, we recommend avoiding a bet on the match outcome. Instead, our pick is "Both Teams to Score" at 1.76, given the recent form of both sides.
