Debrecen

Debreceni VSC V Liverpool

Tuesday 24^th November – 19:45 GMT

Group E

Respective situations:

Debreceni – It’s now theoretically impossible for the Hungarian’s to progress any further in the competition but, however, a berth into the UEFA Europa League is a still a possibility, albeit a very slim one. For Debrecen to drop down into the Europa League they will need not only have to beat Liverpool on Tuesday night, but they will also have to beat Lyon in France, and hope Liverpool don’t beat Fiorentina at Anfield on the final match day. To put it bluntly, they would need a miracle. Bottom place in Group E beckons.

Liverpool – The five time winners of the competition have their backs to the walls as their fate within the tournament doesn’t fall into their own hands. Not only do they need to win both their remaining Group E fixtures, the first in Hungary, but they will also need Lyon, the current leaders of the group, to do them a favour in Florence, at least holding Fiorentina for a draw on Tuesday night. However although that does seem likely at first glance, Lyon have already qualified for the next stage of the competition after drawing with Liverpool on the previous Match Day, so perhaps their hearts won’t be in it and their distinct lack of hunger could be Liverpool’s downfall.  

Even if Lyon do frustrate Fiorentina in Italy on Tuesday night, Liverpool would still need to beat Fiorentina on the final Match Day, at Anfield. What a night that could be.

Debrecen

Group E Position: 4^th

Group E Form: LLLL

I’ve dreaded this game for some time as we simply know next to nothing about the Hungarian’s, despite our love for most European leagues. However, the Hungarian divisions doesn’t really attract too many eastern European followers, mainly because they don’t get the coverage due to their lack of appearances in the big competitions – The Champions League & UEFA Europa League. Nevertheless, that could actually play into their hands, or it could of, shall we say. They were somewhat of an unknown quantity before Group E kicked into life but that certainly isn’t the case any more, and now they have unfortunately earned the reputation of being the beating boys, the team everyone enjoys playing against as it should be an easy set of three points.

Although Debrecen have been a poor outfit thus far, they have still put up some form of resistance in some of their Group E encounters, none more so than against Fiorentina, a side Liverpool desperately need to slip up, also on Tuesday night. Debrecen scored all five of their goals against ‘Viola’ although they shipped plenty in return during the two meetings – nine in fact. On the same token, Debrecen unwillingly boast the worst defensive record in the group stages of the competition, with 14 goals conceded in just four outings. However, Liverpool were the only team out of the three big guns in the group not to put at least four past them so perhaps they do have what’s required to frustrate the Reds’ on Tuesday night.

Not only do Debrecen have the worst defensive record out of the 32 teams competing at this stage but they are also one of just two teams without a single point to their name. The other being Maccabi Haifa in Group A. They clearly haven’t got the funds back home to purchase the talent or even grow some home grown players of their own to compete at the biggest stage and this has shown in their Champions League displays of late, although, they did put in a creditable performance against Liverpool at Anfield, a game they lost 1-0. That was their highlight of the competition so far but they will be hoping to go one better on Tuesday by recording their first ever point baring result in the Champions League proper.

Liverpool

Group E Position: 3rd

Group E Form: WLLD

We have already summed up Liverpool’s predicament and we can clearly weigh up the difficulty of the task ahead of them. Were it completely in their hands then you would fancy the Reds’ to sail through, but that’s certainly not the case, far from it. Liverpool have been struggling all over the shop, with their severe drop in form in the Champions League being elegantly replicated back while in Domestic action, with Liverpool’s league title ambitions all but dead in the water after a disastrous run of results. Normally, however, when results back home have gone astray, Rafael Benitez has look upon the Champions League as an escape clause from the pressure cooker back home in England, but that hasn’t been an option this time around and their fate within the competition could all but be sealed with a Fiorentina win elsewhere.

Were Fiorentina to beat Lyon in Florence, or Liverpool failed to get the better of the Hungarian champions, then Liverpool would exit the competition at their earliest departure point for nearly seven years. Their last five Champions League campaigns has seen them bypass the group stages, some occasions easier than others it must be said, but an early exit is well and truly on the cards on Tuesday. However, we can’t keep focusing on results elsewhere as firstly, Liverpool will need to secure the win they so desperately need on the road in Hungary. Their away record thus far stands at 0-1-1, with the Reds’ still without an away win after a defeat in Fiorentina (2-0), and a draw in Lyon (1-1).  

If this game was based on form then Liverpool wouldn’t stand a chance as their fortunes both in this competition and back home have been dire. However, Rafael Benitez’s does have the injury card to play as a whole host of players have come down with various knocks and injuries. So far this season, just about every player in the Liverpool camp has suffered some form of an injury setback but it’s been the ones to their key players which has hurt them the most, the ones to Steven Gerrard & Fernando Torres – Their talismanic duo.

Fernando Torres missed Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Man City at the weekend and looks likely to miss the trip to Hungary, also, although, Steven Gerrard did play the whole 90 minutes and will captain Liverpool in Hungary as they aim to keep their Champions League dreams alive. If we’re honest, his lack of match fitness shown in the weekend’s game as he didn’t have his usual swagger about him. However, he will enjoy the vast amounts of space the Hungarian outfit will give him and he could be the driving force behind an expected demolition job on Tuesday.

With Fernando Torres out, the forward debate could rumble on as Benitez racks his brain over whether to start with David N’gog, a young French U21 international who has yet to really find his feet, or Andriy Voronin, a Ukrainian international who has fluffed several golden opportunities that Rafa’ has handed him this season. The former looks the most likely after starting on Saturday but he’s only scored four goals this season, and it does appear the goalscoring mantle will be passed down to the midfielder’s – Yossi Benayoun, Steven Gerrard, Dirk Kuyt, once again, although, Liverpool have amassed just 3 goals thus far, a worse tally then Debrecen themselves who have 5.

Match Verdict:- Liverpool to WIN – 1.36 Bet365

Anything but would not only be a major shock around Europe but also the nail in the coffin as far as Liverpool appearances in the Champions League go. It’s a must win game and we, along with everyone else, expect them to win and win well. Steven Gerrard will have no excuses after playing 90 minutes at the weekend, their defence have struggled to keep clean sheets but won’t have many better opportunities then against Debrecen, while our main concerns are with their blunt forwards. However, even they should prosper on Tuesday night, although it maybe a lot closer then we expect due to their severe lack of confidence, despite the fact that it should be a cricket score.

Match Odds:

Debrecen VSC – 10.00 PaddyPower

Draw – 5.00 PaddyPower

Liverpool – 1.36 Bet365

SoccerBetting Value Bet: Yossi Benayoun Anytime Goalscorer – 3.75 WilliamHill

Liverpool V Debrecen

Kick-Off: Tuesday 15^th September – 19:45 GMT

Venue: Anfield (Liverpool)

Liverpool are giants in Europe and what awaits them is a new test in the form of Hungarian champions – Debrecen. Not only will this be a night to remember for the Hungarians but they will also carry the hopes of a nation, with Debrecen becoming the first team from Hungary to qualify for the Champions League proper since 1995. Will they provide Liverpool with a few unexpected scares or will the Merseyside outfit crush the Hungarian hopefuls?

Early Season Form

Liverpool have made a nervy start to their new season in the English Premiership, already losing as many games this season as they lost throughout the whole of last season. However, they haven’t duelled on their early setbacks, with Rafael Benitez’s team returning straight back to winning ways with back-to-back wins away at Bolton and at home to Burnley. However, although those wins will have done the Liverpool players the world of good, those victories were over poor sides and Liverpool will need to up their game if they are to maintain their winning run.

The Hungarian league is at the same stage as the English Premiership, with Debrecen having played five games as well. However, they’ve made a better start to the campaign with four wins and just the one defeat. Last years Hungarian champions find themselves in a prominent position in fifth but they will eye the Champions League as their bread & butter this season as they aim to get their 15 minutes of fame.

Debrecen have been pretty prolific back on home soil in the league but they’ve struggled to find their form on the road, winning one and losing one. Their only defeat of the new campaign did come on the road but it wasn’t their most recent fixture, which does bode well ahead of this fixture as momentum is key when heading into such an intimidating arena such as Anfield. Debrecen have now won four on the spin back home and they take plenty of form into England with them.

Manager Duel

Liverpool manager; Rafael Benitez, is set to reach a landmark 300^th appearance as Liverpool manager on Wednesday and he’ll be extra motivated to get the win at the first time of asking, as if he needed more motivation for arguably his favourite competition. The Spanish manager is feared amongst his peers for being a tactical genius in this very competition and, although Debrecen are somewhat of an unknown quantity, we fully expect Rafael Benitez to something up his sleeve as he bids to avoid a shock.

Debrecen manager; Andras Herczeg, has spent his entire managerial career at Debrecen, but not always as the main man. He’s worked his way up from youth manager, to assistant manager, to first team manager. He has now been at the helm of Debrecen for two years now and he’s been an instant success, winning back-to-back league titles along with the Hungarian domestic Cup & Super Cup. He is slowly, but surely, building up his managerial C.V. And it won’t be long before his managerial credentials are wanted elsewhere.

The Debrecen squad consists mainly of home grown talent, with a few Brazilians to spice up the mix. However, we won’t fool anyone by claiming we know anything about the players as clearly we don’t. They will be an unknown quantity for us, as well as for Liverpool, so they do come across as a dangerous side as only the locals and football statisticians alike will know just how good this Hungarian team is.

Betting Market

Despite Debrecen potentially being a very tricky opponent, mainly down to the fact that they are somewhat of a jack in the box, Liverpool are ridiculously short to comply at the very first attempt. The 2005 winners are 1/8 with SkyBet to hand Debrecen a harsh Champions League reality check, which, although it does look likely, looks far too short to take seriously. If you fancy a punt on the unknown then Debrecen can be had at as big as 25/1 with Bet365. The draw is a huge 8/1 with StanJames.

Betting Odds:

Liverpool – 1/8 SkyBet

Debrecen – 25/1 Bet365

Draw – 8/1 StanJames

SoccerBetting Prediction: Liverpool to WIN – 1/8 SkyBet