Patro Eisden vs Beerschot

Patro Eisden and Beerschot VA face off in the first leg of the Challenger Pro League Promotion Playoff, with a shot at top-flight football the ultimate prize. Beerschot, who finished the regular season in third place with 64 points, arrive as clear favorites against the sixth-placed hosts. Beerschot already showed their class when they hammered Patro 4-0 at this very ground in the regular season — Arnold Vula, Rajiv van La Parra, Genki Haraguchi, and Ken Masui all on the scoresheet. The hosts are further weakened by injury: midfielder Jimmy Kaparos has been out since November with a knee problem, while Amir Rais has missed matches since February with a fractured fibula. One glimmer of hope: coach Mo Messoudi publicly flagged Beerschot's positioning on crosses as something to improve — a rare opening for Patro to exploit. With the return leg in Antwerp on April 27, Patro will be desperate to keep this tie alive. But Beerschot's depth and recent record at this ground are hard to argue with. Our prediction: 1-2