**Charleroi kicks off the new season at home with a **coin-flip vibe** — the Walloons have won once in five but should fancy their chances against an OHL side that's been all over the place defensively.** 🔥

Charleroi's preseason showed glimpses (wins over Seraing sandwiched between draws and losses), while Leuven's form is genuinely all over the map: they've leaked goals for fun (6 vs Lille, 4 vs Heerenveen) but also bagged them. H2H favors Leuven slightly (3 wins to 2) from their last 10 meetings, though draws are the theme — this feels like it could go either way.

Key storylines:

- **Charleroi's home advantage** and attacking trio of **Y. Titraoui, A. Mulumba, and G. Kyei** should probe an Oud-Heverlee defense that hasn't tightened up yet
- **I. Mbenza** leading the line for Charleroi will face a **T. Leysen** backline missing **F. Ricca** — that's a potential edge for the home side's pressing
- **C. Ikwuemesi and M. Maertens** need to click in midfield for Leuven, or Charleroi's **E. Camara** and **M. Sow** will control tempo

Expected lineups:

- **RC Sporting Charleroi**: M. Koné, A. Ousou, C. Keita, R. Teugels, Y. Titraoui, A. Mulumba, G. Kyei, I. Mbenza
- **Oud-Heverlee Leuven**: T. Leysen, T. Ominami, E. Pletinckx, D. Opoku, H. Teklab, Y. Maziz, C. Ikwuemesi, M. Maertens

Prediction:

**Charleroi 2–1 Leuven.** Slight lean to the home side in an opener that'll hinge on defensive stability — something neither team has screamed recently.