Two weeks have passed since Liverpool’s away Europa League debut in Austria.
After a rather miserable first half in which they fell behind 1-0, albeit to a quite beautiful corner routine from LASK, the significantly altered Reds team went on to win easily in the end.
Darwin Néz, Luis Dáz, and Mo Salah scored in northern Austria, and Jürgen Klopp will be aiming for a slightly more relaxed performance this time around when he hosts Belgian team Union Saint Gilloise to Anfield.
UNION SAINT-GILLOISE: WHO ARE THEY?
The band Union St. Gilloise hails from Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and goes by the full name Royale Union Saint-Gilloise.
The last time they won the top division of Belgian football was before to World War Two (1934/35), despite being one of the most successful football clubs in the nation historically with 11 championships. Up until the 1960s, they were the dominant power in Belgium in terms of titles, but then their city neighbours Anderlecht took over.
The club’s decline happened over the same decade, and in 1963, relegation to the second division set Les Unionistes on a downhill, rising, downward spiral that would ultimately land them in the basement division, also known as the fourth division. They have spent a large portion of their existence moving between divisions while attempting to establish their identity on the pitch.
That is, until Brighton’s somewhat infamous owner purchased the team in 2018, looking to broaden his “footballing portfolio” and send many of the Seagulls’ incoming transfers to a club within the European Union who would be able to send them if they weren’t yet eligible for a work permit in the post-Brexit world or weren’t yet ready for Premier League play.
While the football played on the pitch (more on that later) may not resemble that played on the south coast of England, the club’s philosophy and business model are very similar: they seek out undervalued markets, try to find value, and give players a platform to hone their skills in Europe before selling them for a healthy profit while also receiving assistance in the form of loans from their sister club.
Both Deniz Undav and the rising star Kaoru Mitoma spent the 2021/22 campaign there on loan. The thrilling Simon Adingra most recently played at the Joseph Marlin Stadium last season (although Liverpool won’t be playing there because of its 9,400 capacity; instead, the away match will be at Anderlecht’s Lotto Park, which seats 22,500).
They transformed from a team that played primarily in the second division during that time to a team that came agonisingly close to winning the Pro League in 2021–2022—spending 200 straight days atop the standings before falling to Club Brugge. Before Toby Alderweireld’s goal gave Antwerp the league championship in the 89th minute, the previous season ended tragically, with Antwerp winning in dramatic fashion.
They’ve also qualified for European competition in back-to-back seasons after a 58-year absence. Their most recent trip saw them reach the quarterfinals of the Europa League before losing to Bayer Leverkusen, who were Xabi Alonso’s team.
STYLE OF PLAY AND TACTICS
Alexander Blessin, a former RB Leipzig U19 and Genoa coach, replaced Karel Geraerts as Union S-G’s new manager this summer. With four wins from seven league games (along with one draw and two losses) and a draw in their home opener against Toulouse in the Europa League, he has had a respectable start to the season.
They religiously play with a three at the back system, something that hasn’t changed from last season. In their fixtures this year, it has either been a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2. This allows them a solid defensive structure, ranked second in the league for expected goals against (0.83 per ninety, although they have been unfortunate and somehow conceded 1.29 per ninety). There is an emphasis on rigidness and a set structure when they are not in possession. The wingbacks drop into a back five, and set up a defensive wall across the backline, each player with a space to cover which they don’t stray from. There isn’t much emphasis on pressing (although it is something that they can do), instead they are happy to concede possession and sit in, asking you to break them down.
The emphasis in possession is on width. As they did the year before, Union S-G will try to get the ball out quickly to their incredibly speedy wingers who enjoy taking on their man. They will then try to cross or cut inside to get the ball in the centre. This season, centre attacking has been more prevalent, and newcomer Mohammed Amoura has improved both the quality of goal scoring and goal-scoring in that area (scoring twice on his debut against Cercle Brugge).
In terms of projected goals, the data indicates that they are the second-best club in Belgium (expected to score 2.06 goals for every 90 minutes played), but this has been inflated by their six (yes, six) penalties in their first seven league games. Although penalties do inflate their numbers in this area, it should be noted that they enter the opponent’s penalty area more than any other team in the league, with their 32.3 touches per 90 seconds nearly 2 touches more than the next-best team (Antwerp, with 30.7). Union’s success with penalties this year isn’t by accident (well, maybe some of it is), it’s intentional.
STAR PLAYERS
German Dennis Eckert has scored six goals in six appearances so far this season, but four of those goals have come from the penalty spot (someone has to put them in, I guess?). The most intriguing attacking prospect, though, may be the signing of Mohamed Amoura, an Algerian international, from Swiss club Lugano this summer. Amoura took Victor Boniface’s position, who was headed to Leverkusen. With his movement and deft touch on the ball, he appears to be a challenge for defenders with two goals in his first start (as previously indicated).
Another African, Jean Thierry Lazare of Cote D’Ivoire, who plays behind the two attackers or further back in the midfield, has shown creativity this year. He has exceptional ball carrying skills and is incredibly swift (according to FBRef, he is in the 94th percentile for successful take-ons and the 98th percentile for progressive carrying among midfielders in the “next top 8 leagues”). He will repeatedly run at his defender before moving into open space and searching for his man there.
The Mac Allister brothers’ reunion after Kevin Mac Allister (yep, the Home Alone character) moved to Belgium this summer from Argentinos Juniors was arguably the greatest part of the draw. When the participants learned of the draw, it brought to this nice scene.
He’s adjusting to life in Europe well, playing almost every minute that’s available in a back three’s outside right centre defender position. When the two compete against one another on Thursday at Anfield, there ought to be an emotional moment.
GAME PLAN VS LIVERPOOL
Union S-G are probably Liverpool’s biggest test in this group; they advanced to the quarterfinals of this competition last year, defeating some formidable foes along the way, including the now Champions League team Union Berlin. Liverpool may have gotten something of a fright in that first half in Linz; it might have awakened them to the idea that they couldn’t just turn up and win this group.
Liverpool will be glad to have the ball and set up camp in the Belgians’ half. They will try to keep the Reds at bay for as long as they can before choosing the right time to use some lightning-quick speed to expose them in vast areas. For Union, it will be a game of counterattacking, something they have done previously.
For Liverpool, getting off to a strong start and being aggressive will be crucial. If they can score early, it forces their opponent out, and at that point, Union will likely find it difficult to gain control of the game in any meaningful way. Whatever the result, their players will experience an amazing moment on Thursday.