Wolfsburg want to end negative trend against Gent

Manuel Veth –

Wolfsburg vs Gent – Thursday, November 7, 20:00BST/21:00CEST – VfL Wolfsburg Arena, Wolfsburg, Germany

Wolfsburg vs Gent will take place at the Volkswagen Arena. (Photo by Ronny Hartmann/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Two defeats in a row eliminated Wolfsburg from the DFB Pokal and their unbeaten streak in the Bundesliga, where they were the last undefeated team in the competition.

What will give Wolfsburg head coach Oliver Glasner some food for thought were the manner of the two defeats. In the DFB Pokal Wolfsburg were dismantled 6-1 at home against RB Leipzig. Down just 1-0 until the 55th minute Leipzig’s second goal opened the floodgates and by the 88th minute the Wolves were down 6-0.

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It was similar against Dortmund. Wolfsburg kept the pace for most of the match. Then when Marco Reus went off injured Dortmund made adjustments and scored in the 52nd minute. Wolfsburg never recovered and when the dust settled had lost the game 3-0.

“We can’t afford to switch off,” Glasner said. “We can’t forget that we didn’t lose 13 games in a row,” Joshua Guilavogui said. “The three points against Gent are important, as are the three points against Leverkusen.”

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Two games against the trend before the two-week international break. Gent, in the meantime, have continued their unbeaten streak that dates back to matchday 10 of the Jupiler League when they were defeated 4-0 by Brugge. The stretch of five unbeaten games also includes the 2-2 draw against Wolfsburg.

Third in the Jupiler League and second in the Europa League, even on five points with Wolfsburg. Both teams can make a big step towards the next round with a win on Thursday. Wolfsburg are certainly the favourites, despite their poor run of results. But Gent, with striker Jonathan David are a dangerous side always capable to upset the apple-cart.

Wolfsburg vs Gent – Players to look out for:

Wout Weghorst #9 – VfL Wolfsburg

Wout Weghorst has been the silent star of the Bundesliga this season. The tall Dutch striker has scored eight goals and three assists in 15 games across all competitions. The 27-year-old forward has been involved in 63% of Wolfsburg’s goals this season and has held his pace from last year when he scored 18 goals and seven assists in 36 games across all competitions.

Wout Weghorst of VfL Wolfsburg celebrates after he scores his teams opening goal during the Bundesliga match between Fortuna Duesseldorf and VfL Wolfsburg at Merkur Spiel-Arena on September 13, 2019 in Duesseldorf, Germany. (Photo by Lukas Schulze/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Jonathan David #16 – KAA Gent

Canadian national team striker Jonathan David has continued his rise to one of the best strikers among the European-based North American forwards. The 19-year-old striker has scored 11 goals and six assists in 22 games across all competitions. Furthermore, David has also been on fire for his national team scoring 11 goals in 11 games. As a result, David is now the most valuable Canadian national team player on the planet based, according to Transfermarkt. 

Gent’s Jonathan David celebrates after scoring during a soccer match between Standard de Liege and KAA Gent, Friday 10 May 2019 in Liege, on day 8 (out of 10) of the Play-off 1 of the ‘Jupiler Pro League’ Belgian soccer championship. BELGA PHOTO VIRGINIE LEFOUR (Photo credit should read VIRGINIE LEFOUR/AFP/Getty Images)

Wolfsburg vs Gent – Match Stats

• Gent have won only once away in the UEFA Europa League, group stage to final (D4 L4).
• The teams previously met in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League round of 16, the first time either club had reached that stage of the competition.
• Wolfsburg won both matches, a 3-2 away victory in the first leg for Dieter Hecking’s side preceding a 1-0 success at home.
• Gent have played four others against German opposition, winning both ties against Eintracht Frankfurt in the 1991/92 UEFA Cup second round and Werder Bremen in the 2001 UEFA Intertoto Cup third round thanks to victories in Germany.

Futbolgrad Network Prediction: Wolfsburg vs Gent – 2-0

Wolfsburg vs Gent – Lineups

VfL Wolfsburg:

Formation: 3-4-3

Pervan – Mbabu, Bruma, Tisserand – Roussillon, Guilavogui, Arnold, William – Brekalo, Weghorst, João Victor

Head Coach: Oliver Glasner

KAA Gent:

Formation: 4-3-1-2

Kaminski – Asare, Ngadeu-Ngadjui, Plastun, Lustig – Kums, Owusu, Odjidja-Ofoe – David – Yaremchuk, Depoitre

Head Coach: Jess Thorup

Manuel Veth is the owner and Editor in Chief of the Futbolgrad Network. He also works as a freelance journalist and among others, contributes to Forbes.com and Pro Soccer USA. He holds a Doctorate of Philosophy in History from King’s College London, and his thesis is titled: “Selling the People’s Game: Football’s transition from Communism to Capitalism in the Soviet Union and its Successor States,” which is available HERE. Manuel has lived in Amsterdam, Kyiv, Moscow, Tbilisi, London, and currently splits his time between Victoria, BC, and Munich, Germany.  Follow Manuel on Twitter @ManuelVeth.