RB Leipzig vs Zorya Predictions

RB Leipzig struggled in the first leg of this Europa League play-off tie, but can they secure a home win to book a place in the group stage? The Red Bulls haven’t got the longest record in Europe, so another campaign in the Europa League would be a good experience for their young squad. After a run to the quarter-finals of this competition last season, can the Bundesliga outfit wrap up a spot in the group stage at home to Zorya on Thursday night?

The hosts have to bounce back from a heavy defeat to progress in Europe. They lost 4-1 to Borussia Dortmund at the weekend, a result which showed how far off the Champions League places they are right now. Their incredible rise up the ranks in Germany has stuttered in the last year, but last season did bring their first season in European competition. They had genuine hope of a strong run in the Europa League, so this tournament could be a chance for the Red Bulls to kick on.

However, they need to put out Zorya on Thursday night. The visitors managed to grind out a 0-0 draw at home to the Bundesliga outfit in the first leg, and they’ll be looking to pull off the same trick which took them through the last stage. They surprised Portuguese side Braga by going through on away goals, after drawing both legs. They’ll be pushing for a similar result to take them past Leipzig, although it’s hard to escape the feeling that the visitors are slightly out of their depth in this one.

Leipzig are heavy favourites for a victory here, but they’ll need to be wary of Zorya’s gameplan. Keeping a clean sheet should be enough to limit the visitors, as the Ukrainian side lack the grit to pull off a 0-0 in this trip. We expect the away side to concede here, especially after Leipzig’s four straight victories at home in this competition.

Zorya have failed to score in three straight games, including Sunday’s home loss to Desna. The Ukrainians have a habit of coming up short in front of goal in this competition, losing five of their last seven Europa League trips without scoring. That’s likely to be repeated on Thursday, with Leipzig winning two of their last three at home to nil. We’re backing a win and clean sheet combo for the Bundesliga side, along with another 2-0 loss for the visitors.