Utrecht vs Lyon Prediction: Visitors to show their class

FC Utrecht welcome Olympique Lyon to Stadion Galgenwaard in the Uefa Europa League on Thursday (20:00, TNT Sports 7) as they get their league phase campaigns underway.

Below you will find my Utrecht vs Lyon predictions, where you will also find the latest team news and match odds, as well as predicted line-ups and key stats.

Team News

Utrecht might be without the services Dani de Wit (foot), Rafik El Arguioui (knee), Davy van den Berg (unspecified), Yoan Cathline (leg) and Victor Jensen (hamstring) due to injuries.

Without Jensen, who scored five goals in qualifying, Domstedelingen boss Ron Jans must make tweaks in attacking areas, particularly as his side have blanked in their previous two Eredivisie games.

Souffian El Karouani has provided four assists in the league, and the left-back offers his side an attacking dynamic from defence.

Striker Sebastien Haller may be considered for a start here as Utrecht bid to get back amongst the goals.

Football Odds

For the visitors, Corentin Tolisso is absent due to suspension after being sent off in the loss to Manchester United in April, while Remy Descamps (hand), Abner Vinicius (unspecified), Ernest Nuamah (cruciate ligament tear) and Orel Mangala (knee) are sidelined through injury.

Tolisso is Lyon's current top scorer with two league goals in 2025/26, so more of the attacking burden will need to taken on by the forwards on Thursday, including exciting winger Malick Fofana and Martin Satriano.

Utrecht vs Lyon Odds

Utrecht have won three of their past six outings in all competitions. They are 9/4 to come out on top on Thursday.

Their last home appearance in the Europa League qualifying play-off ended in a goalless draw with Zrinjski and the stalemate on this occasion is marketed at 5/2.

Lyon have won four of their five Ligue 1 fixtures this season and they are 23/20 (implied probability of 46.5%) to collect the three points.

At least one team has failed to score in five of Utrecht's previous six games across all competitions and BTTS - No is available at 5/4.

Lyon to win @ 23/20

Lyon have started the season well in Ligue 1 and I think this momentum can serve them well in the Netherlands against Utrecht on Thursday. The hosts are currently low on confidence because they have failed to score in their last two matches.

This may not help them against Lyon, who's early-season success has stemmed from defensive solidity. The French outfit have kept clean sheets in each of their four league wins to date and I think they may find it relatively comfortable to shut-out a team currently struggling in the final third.

In Tolisso's absence, more of the available attacking stars will have to step up here and they have plenty of quality in the final third with the likes of Fofana and Satriano.

Against a Utrecht side struggling to make things click, I think the hosts can profit and I think they are good value to claim the victory on Thursday night.

Both teams to score - No @ 5/4

As I mentioned above, at least one team has failed to score in five of Utrecht's last six matches and they themselves have blanked in three of them, with the Dutch outfit on a two-game streak without finding the net.

Additionally, Lyon have been a strong unit defensively and I think they will look forward to facing a team who are currently having problems in the final third. Their four Ligue 1 wins saw them keep clean sheets as well, so I think the evidence is suggesting at least one team will fail to score on Thursday.

Utrecht seem the team most likely to do so based on recent results, but I must admit that the 5/4 price for BTTS- No seems very generous given the circumstances.

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