**Royal Antwerp's home opener looks like a chance to bounce back from a rough preseason — Beveren's visit to Bosuilstadion should favor the hosts.** 🔴

Antwerp limped through their warm-ups (two losses in three), but they've got the H2H edge here: five wins to Beveren's three in their last eight. Beveren come in hot off wins, though that 4-3 thriller and 0-4 hammering suggest shaky defense.

Key storylines:

- **Janssen & Fofana** leading the Antwerp attack at home will be critical — Beveren's backline hasn't shown consistency in preseason
- **Royal Antwerp's midfield trio** of Praet, Scott, and Kerk need to control tempo and suppress Beveren's counters early
- **Beveren's win streak masked fragile defending** — three wins obscured alarming scorelines; this trip to a stronger side tests if they're genuinely improved

Expected lineups:

- **Royal Antwerp FC**: Devalckeneer, Van Den Bosch, Ibrahim, Ahoka, Verstraeten, Scott, Praet, Kerk, Fofana, Janssen, Achihi
- **SK Beveren**: D. Man, Jans, Wuytens, Janssens, M. Kinsiona, Abrahams, D. Schryver, Dewaele, Mertens, Brüls, Sayala

Prediction:

**Antwerp 2–1 Beveren** — Home edge plus the H2H record give Antwerp a clear lean here. Beveren will threaten on the break, but Antwerp's superior setup should prevail. 🎯