Club Brugge 3-0 Lens: result and report

The Pundit picked Club Brugge (50%): correct

Report

Club Brugge beat Lens 3-0 at the Jan Breydelstadion and kept a clean sheet. The win was deserved, but the margin flatters them. Lens created enough to make this a much closer game.

The home side struck either side of half-time, so Lens went from level to two down in a short spell of play.

Hans Vanaken scored in the third minute of first-half added time after Nicolò Tresoldi set him up. Joaquin Seys made it 2-0 on 50 minutes. Carlos Forbs then settled it on 72 minutes, finishing a move from Hugo Vetlesen. Vanaken was named player of the match, while Forbs added a goal to the assists he had already been providing.

Lens: plenty of chances, nothing to show

Lens did far more in attack than the scoreline suggests, though none of it counted.

They had more shots, nine to seven, and more on target, seven to five. They also created six big chances to Club Brugge's four and missed every one of them. Lens hit the woodwork as well. Club Brugge's goalkeeper had to make six saves, while his opposite number made two.

The pattern held across the game. Lens had 15 key passes to Club Brugge's seven and more dangerous attacks, so this was not a side that simply sat back and waited.

Where the game was really decided

Despite all that Lens activity, Club Brugge still had the better chances overall. They led on xG, 2.65 to 1.94, because their openings were of higher quality even if there were fewer of them.

The real gap was finishing. Club Brugge missed only one of their four big chances, while Lens missed all six of theirs. That difference turned a game Club Brugge edged on chance quality into a comfortable-looking win.