soccer | Feyenoord x Lazio - Nov 03 | 17:45 UTC

[Mat]

Game info Feyenoord x Lazio

 

Feyenoord, fight for their survival in the Europa League this Thursday, November 3, facing Lazio. The match, part of the agenda of the sixth–final – round of the group stage of the 2022/2023 version of the Europa League, will take place at the Kuip stadium in Rotterdam. The start is scheduled for 17:45 UTC.

 

How does the Europa League 2022/2023 work?

 

The competition's regulations, which have been downsized since the last edition thanks to the creation of the European Conference League, were maintained. With 32 participants, the Europa League has eight groups in its first stage. Each of them has four teams facing each other in a round-trip system. At the end of six rounds, the first two are still in contention for the title.

 

However, the champion of each bracket advances directly to the round of 16. Whoever is in second place goes to the round of 16 stages, in which they will face a 'relegated' club from the Champions League. The third place in each group will have the chance to continue in an international tournament in the second semester. It will be relegated to the European Conference League.

 

Feyenoord

Until the previous round, the bracket had the four teams equal in score. They had five points. Feyenoord was left behind when they were beaten 1-0 by Sturm Graz on Austrian soil. However, he counted on the collaboration of the Eredivisie in preparation for the decisive meeting this Thursday. He had postponed the match he would play at the weekend for the twelfth round of the Dutch Championship.7

 

This opened up the possibility of having a free week for training. After all, there is a possibility that the bracket will end with all teams tied with eight points. However, if Midtjjylland doesn't overcome Sturm Graz, Feyennord's battle for the spot is straight with Lazio. In this case, victory alone is not enough. That would leave the clubs even in the score, but the Italians, who won 4-2 in the first round in Rome, would take advantage of the confrontation, which is the first tiebreaker.

 

Thus, Feyenoord needs to win by a minimum difference of two goals. The clear advantage of two goals would take the definition to the goal difference, allowing the Dutch team to overcome Lazio. In the Eredivisie, with 24 points (seven wins, three draws, and one defeat) and one game less than most opponents, the Rotterdam club occupies the fifth position in the leaderboard. They are four less than Ajax's leader.

 

Lazio

At least in terms of survival in the tournament, the Italian team only needs a draw this Thursday. Thus, it would advance to the knockout stage. However, to guarantee a direct place in the round of 16, which would avoid a clash with a relegated team from the Champions League in the round of 16, victory over Feyenoord is mandatory.

 

So, in the worst case, it would end up on par with Sturm Graz. However, it has a good advantage in the jump of goals compared with the Austrians. They have one goal deficit, while Sturm Graz conceded four more goals than they scored. It's a difference that can be reversed. However, it is not the easiest scenario to implement.

 

On Sunday, Lazio was surprised by Salernitana in a match for the twelfth round of the 2022/2023 edition of the Italian Championship. Acting in the Olympic stadium, he took 3 to 1 against the Salerno club. The result interrupted an unbeaten streak that reached eight games. The series began on September 18 and featured five wins and three draws. With 24 points (seven wins, three draws, and two defeats), it dropped to the fifth position in the Serie A leaderboard when considering the tie-breaking criteria.