West Ham United v RSC Anderlecht
UEFA Europa Conference League Group B, London Stadium, Thursday 13 October, 8pm BST
West Ham United continue the UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL) Group B campaign by hosting RSC Anderlecht on Thursday evening.
David Moyes' Hammers will hope to repeat last week's 1-0 win over the Belgians in Brussels. A win, combined with an FCSB win or draw in their tie with Silkeborg IF in Romania, would see the Irons top the group and qualify direct to the round of 16.
West Ham have three wins from three Group B matches played, having defeated FCSB 3-1 at London Stadium and Silkeborg 3-2 in Denmark in September.
Thursday's tie marks the third competitive European meeting between the two historic clubs, with the first being Anderlecht's 4-2 win over West Ham in the 1976 European Cup Winners' Cup final, and last week's victory, both of which were played in Brussels
Here is all the essential information for you ahead of the game...
Match information…
There will be goal-line technology at operation at London Stadium on Thursday evening, but there is no VAR in the UEFA Europa Conference League this season.
Each manager can name up to 12 substitutes, of whom five can be used on three occasions (plus half-time). There are no additional ‘concussion substitutes’ available in UEFA Club Competition.
If a player receives three cautions during the group stage, he will be required to serve a one-match suspension. Angelo Ogbonna has received two cautions so far, while six other West Ham players have received one.
The 2022/23 UECL final will be hosted at Slavia Prague’s Fortuna Arena in the Czech Republic on 7 June next year.
Tickets...
With tickets starting at just £19 Adults and £10 for Juniors for Season Ticket Holders, and from £24 and £15 respectively for non-Season Ticket Holders, you can bring all the family to east London for a special night under the lights.
Do not miss out! Get your tickets for Anderlecht and Silkeborg now by clicking here, calling us on 0333 030 1966 or visiting us in person at the London Stadium Ticket Office.
Full pricing details and sales dates are available for Anderlecht here and Silkeborg here.
How To Follow…
Thursday's tie will be broadcast live in the UK by BT Sport 2. More information on how to watch can be found by clicking here.
You can also follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle.
Travel...
There is no engineering work planned on any London Underground lines, but Elizabeth line services between Paddington and Abbey Wood only operate until 11pm.
On Greater Anglia, engineering work is taking place overnight between Broxbourne and Hertford East, closing all lines. Buses will replace late evening trains between the two stations.
Team News...
Winger Maxwel Cornet has missed West Ham United's last two fixtures with an ankle injury suffered in the 2-0 Premier League win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at London Stadium on 1 October.
Morocco centre-back Nayef Aguerd is working his way back after suffering an ankle injury in pre-season.
Anderlecht's injury issues surround central midfielder Adrien Trébel, who has been out with a shoulder injury since August, and Belgium U21 international defensive midfielder Marco Kana, who has only featured once this season.
The Opposition...
When you think of Belgian club football, you almost certainly think first of Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht.
Based in the country’s capital, Brussels, Anderlecht have won a record five European trophies, along with 34 Belgian First Division titles and nine Belgian Cups, also both national records.
After dominating domestically in the 1960s, winning five straight First Division titles between 1963/64 and 1967/68 – another record – Anderlecht became one of Europe’s leading clubs in the 1970s and early 1980s.
After reaching the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1970, when they lost to Arsenal, Anderlecht reached three straight European Cup Winners’ Cup finals in 1976, 1977 and 1978. The first, any West Ham United fan will tell you, saw the Belgian Cup holders defeat the Hammers 4-2 in their home city at Brussels’ Heysel Stadium.
West Germans Hamburg proved too strong in 1977, but Anderlecht bounced back to defeat Austria Vienna 4-0 the following year.
And further proof of the Belgians’ class was shown as they overcame two of the 1970s’ other European powerhouses, Bayern Munich and Liverpool, over two legs to lift the European Super Cup in both 1976 and 1978.
Into the 1980s and Anderlecht became the first – and only – Belgian club to win the UEFA Cup, holding off Portuguese giants Benfica to do so in 1983. Only goalkeeper Tony Parks’ heroics prevented them repeating that success the following year, when Tottenham Hotspur defeated RSCA on penalties in the final.
Anderlecht reached a fourth European Cup Winners’ Cup final in 1990, losing to Italians Sampdoria, but have not been back to another since.
While the First Division titles continued to flow into the new millennium, the Purple and White have seen their previously vice-like grip on Belgian domestic football loosened in recent years.
Anderlecht have been crowned champions just once in the previous eight seasons, as their historic rivals Club Brugge have emerged as the country’s dominant force, topping the First Division in four of the last five campaigns, while West Ham’s UEFA Europa League group-stage opponents from last season, KRC Genk, won the title in 2019.
After years of relative stability under the ownership of the Vanden Stock family, who had run the club since the 1970s, Anderlecht have changed hands twice since 2018, first to pharmaceuticals magnate Marc Coucke, then to media entrepreneur Wouter Vandenhaute.
There have also been regular changes in the dugout, with seven men holding the position of manager since 2017.
Chairman Vandenhaute will hope the latest, reigning Belgian Manager of the Season Felice Mazzù, will build on the success he brought to previous clubs White Star Woluwe, Genk and Union SG.
Results so far have been mixed domestically, with Antwerp and Genk's outstanding starts seemingly putting the First Division title beyond them already, but Anderlecht will hope the UEFA Europa Conference League offers a chance to return European glory to Brussels.
Match Officials
Referee: Willy Delajod (FRA)
Assistant Referees: Erwan Christophe Finjean (FRA) & Philippe Jeanne (FRA)
Fourth Official: Thomas Leonard (FRA)
Thursday's match officials all come from France, led by FIFA listed referee Willy Delajod.
Thirty-year-old Delajod was born in Cornier in south-eastern France, close to the border with Germany, began officiating when he was 13, and was just 23 when he took charge of his first professional match in Ligue 2 in January 2016, before joining UEFA's CORE programme for training young match officials to international level.
He was promoted to Ligue 1 in 2018, setting the record for the youngest referee ever to take control of a match in France's top-flight at the age of just 25.
Delajod was VAR for the 2020 Trophée des Champions and 2021 Coupe de France final before being assistant VAR for last season's UEFA Champions League final betwween Liverpool and Real Madrid.
