- KAA Gent are undefeated on home turf across all competitions in 2026 (W1, D2).
- Gent have won only two of their last 10 in all competitions (W2, D6, L2).
Sides set to neutralise each other in Belgium
KAA Gent head into Thursday's UEFA Conference League Qualification 2026 fixture against Ukrainian side LNZ Cherkasy as the clear favourites at 39/100, but the visitors look set to make a very decent game of it.
Rik De Mil took over Gent on 10 December 2025 and has kept them largely unbeaten ever since, especially at Planet Group Arena where they are unbeaten at home.
Their recent results have been mixed, however, with a sequence of one win, three draws and a defeat in their last five. Back-to-back draws with Dutch side FC Twente and LNZ in the previous round could suggest that the Belgians are not great at breaking down stubborn opponents or that they are settling for a draw when they get ahead.
LNZ's results have been more even, recording three wins, four draws and three defeats in their last ten in all competitions. That sequence includes a 6-2 away win over SK Sturm Graz, a 1-0 home defeat to Goztepe AS Izmir and the 0-0 draw with Gent a fortnight ago.
LNZ will make a tough nut to crack
Neither team can claim a significant edge from the first leg, but LNZ have been better on the road this year, winning two, drawing one and losing one of their four away matches in all competitions, while scoring seven goals.
Vitaliy Ponomarov has turned them into a compact, pragmatic unit since taking charge on 5 June 2025 and they travel well.
Gent are a narrow, adaptable 4-2-3-1 team that are good at stopping the ball in transition and making the most of their numbers when they break forward, usually with a vertical ball. LNZ operate from a 4-3-3 base, they are a tight, disciplined block and then can be explosive when space opens up.
This has all the hallmarks of a chess match rather than a goal fest, but the home side should have enough quality to eke out a win or at least avoid defeat in the 90 minutes. The odds of 39/100 reflect that but there is enough of a possibility for Gent to let LNZ off the hook, like they did in the last clash, for the Draw No Bet line to still be worth taking.
