Champions League preview and odds: KAA Gent vs Wolfsburg

Published on: 15/02/2016

Champions League preview and odds: KAA Gent vs Wolfsburg

February 17, 2016 19:45pm - KAA Gent Stadium

Champions League - Round of 16, First leg

Two teams who have never played in the Champions League knockout stages will go head-to-head on Wednesday night, as Belgium champions KAA Gent take on German challengers Wolfsburg with a quarter-final place up for grabs.

Uncharted territory for both sides

Gent made the most of their first ever Champions League group stage appearance, by securing a second-place finish behind Zenit in Group H and progressing to the Round of 16. They must now take on another team that are playing in the knockout stages for the very first time.

Since beating Zenit on the final group stage Match Day, the Belgians have won eight and lost three games in all competitions. Two of those defeats came against arch-rivals Club Brugge in the Belgian Cup (1-0) and the league (1-0).

Wolfsburg in Europes elite 16 for first ever time.

Wolfsburg made in to the Champions League knockout stage at the second attempt by finishing two points clear of PSV Eindhoven at the top of Group B. They sealed their progression with a dramatic 3-2 home win over Manchester United on the final Match Day.

Since that game, the Germans have won just two of the seven competitive games that they have played and as a result, they have dropped to eighth in the Bundesliga. However, Dieter Hecking`s men are coming into this game on the back of a 2-0 league win over Ingolstadt.

Team news

Hein Vanhaezebrouck will be without the injured Thomas Matton, while Brecht Dejaegere, Lasse Nielsen and Danijel Milicevic are all doubts.

Meanwhile, Naldo is banned for Wolfsburg and will be missing along with the injured Bas Dost, while Max Arnold, Josh Guilavogui and Andre Schürrle are all on the doubtful list.

Recent form (All competitions)

KAA Gent: WLLWW

Wolfsburg: WLDLW

Betting odds and tips

The home side have lost just one of their last 29 competitive home matches in all competitions. Meanwhile. Wolfsburg have won just four of their last 15 away games in all competitions, having lost eight and drawn three.

The home win looks like a good price at 2/1 with Bet365.

By Neil Morris

Published on: 15/02/2016

Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (15/02/2016 14:17:41) but are subject to change.