Fenerbahce has three clean sheets in last five away games
Anderlecht failed to score in first leg and had an xg of just 0.63
Two of Anderlecht’s last five matches have seen under 1.5 goals
Strong Fenerbahce defence should turn this into a low-scoring game
With a 3-0 win in the first leg, Fenerbahçe have one foot in the next round, and it will be no surprise to anyone to see José Mourinho’s side set up much more defensively than they did in the first leg, looking to keep an urgent Anderlecht attack quiet for 90 minutes. They’ve already demonstrated they can keep a clean sheet against the Belgian side, and while they did allow 15 shots, many of them were nothing more than half-chances, with only two on target and an xG of 0.63 for the team in purple and white.
Mourinho will be expecting an onslaught from Anderlecht and will use every trick in the book to slow the game down and disrupt their rhythm. Fenerbahçe will be a threat on the counter but won’t be keen on committing too many men forward and won’t carry the same attacking threat as they did in the first leg. This should end up being a low-scoring affair if the away side get their way.
It’s unlikely Fenerbahçe will keep out Anderlecht for 90 minutes, and may end up letting one go in, but I can’t see them giving any more away. 1-0 to the home side won’t be enough for them, but it’s the most likely outcome given the circumstances
