AZ Alkmaar vs Shelbourne Prediction and Betting Tips

AZ Alkmaar return to action in the UEFA Conference League when they take on Shelbourne at AFAS Stadion on Thursday. The Irish outfit will be out to get up and running on the continental scene after failing to win any of their three games so far.

AZ Alkmaar failed to arrest their slump in form at the weekend when they fell to a 3-1 defeat against Heerenveen in their Eredivisie clash at the Abe Lenstra Stadion.

Maarten Martens’ side have now lost three games on the trot across all competitions, including a 3-1 defeat at the hands of English Premier League side Crystal Palace in the Conference League on November 6.

AZ Alkmaar have lost two of their three Conference League matches, with a 1-0 victory over Slovan Bratislava on October 23 sandwiched between the two defeats.

Meanwhile, Shelbourne continue to struggle for results on the continental scene as they fell to a 1-0 loss against Kosovo outfit Drita in their Conference League clash last time out.

With that result, Joseph O'Brien’s men are one of nine sides yet to taste victory in the Conference League, losing twice and claiming one draw to sit 30th in the standings, two points and three places behind Thursday’s hosts.

Having finished third in the just-concluded Irish Premier League campaign, Shelbourne will now turn their full focus to the Conference League, where they could move level with 15th-placed AEK Larnaca with a win on Thursday.

AZ Alkmaar vs Shelbourne Head-To-Head and Key Numbers

This will be the first-ever meeting between AZ Alkmaar and Shelbourne, who will both be looking to begin their rivalry on a winning note.
AZ Alkmaar are unbeaten in 10 of their last 11 home games across all competitions this season, picking up seven wins and three draws so far.
Shelbourne have lost just two of their most recent seven away matches, while claiming four wins and one draw since late August.
AZ Alkmaar have won each of their four Conference League home matches this term, including games in the qualifiers, while scoring 13 goals and keeping three clean sheets.

AZ Alkmaar vs Shelbourne Prediction

AZ Alkmaar and Shelbourne have both endured a slow start to the Conference League campaign and will be looking to secure a morale-boosting result here. However, given the gulf in quality and experience between the two teams, we are backing Martens’ men to come away with all three points unscathed.

Prediction: AZ Alkmaar 3-0 Shelbourne