In this preview, we are covering four matchups of the Europa League third qualifying round (2nd leg), out of which three have teams from Austria. Austria Vienna and Sturm Graz will be visiting Limassol in Cyprus and Fenerbahce in Turkey respectively, while Altach play host to their Belgian opponents Gent hoping to seal qualification. At the same time, Domzale will entertain German team Freiburg to contest their last chance of moving ahead to the group stages.
AEL LIMASSOL (Cyp) vs. AUSTRIA VIENNA (Aut)
Three-way: 1: AEL Limassol +190; X; +229 Draw; 2: Austria Vienna +179
Spread 0: AEL Limassol +102; Austria Vienna -104
Total +2: Over -143; Under +131
AEL LIMASSOL (Cyp)
AEL Limassol finished their last league campaign in third place, losing out top spot by five points. They had a decent defense, as they conceded the least goals in the league with 19 in 26 games.
They have been in swashbuckling form in both the previous rounds of the Europa League qualifiers. In the first round, they defeated St Joseph’s by 0:4 away, then 6:0 at home. In the next round, they were victorious against Niederkorn by 0:1, and 2:1 across both the legs. However, in the first leg of this round, they could only manage a scoreless draw, hence losing their chance to score an away goal.
In terms of new signings, they have brought in Porto youngster Fidelis Irhene, Cape Varde goalkeeper Vozinha, and Portuguese young right back Andre Teixiera, all on free transfers.
AUSTRIA VIENNA (Aut)
With the league already starting in Austria, Vienna has struggled to put in good performances in both the matches. They have been on the losing side both the times, and hence are languishing in the bottom, although the season has just started.
However, finishing second last year in the league with the second best attack, Vienna gained direct entry into the third round of the Qualifiers for the Europa League. In the first leg, they managed to stop a rampant Limassol side from scoring and hence keeping their chances of qualification alive.
They have signed former Ajax centreback Heiko Westermann on a free transfer, while bringing in forwards Kevin Friesenbichler from Benfica and Adnira Wacker respectively for a total of 1.3 million Euros.
AEL LIMASSOL (Cyp) vs. AUSTRIA VIENNA (Aut) – Match Prediction:
This is one of the two games that will be played on Wednesday August 2nd. Both the teams have made good signings in the transfer window, and even though Vienna isn’t in good form, they still have enough quality in their players to cause problems for the opposition. However, this being a home game for Limassol, my prediction will be a home win.
MY PICK: AEL LIMASSOL (+190)
ALTACH (Aut) vs. GENT (Bel)
Three-way: 1: Altach +236; X: +242 Draw; 2: Gent +134
Spread +0.5: Altach -147; Gent +133
Total +2.5: Over +122; Under -130
ALTACH (Aut)
Altach managed to safely secure a fourth position in the domestic league last year, which gave them entry to the Europa League qualifiers. With their season already well underway, they have made a good start so far with one win and a draw.
They haven’t been very impressive in the earlier rounds, but were extremely efficient in getting the results. In the first round against Chikhura, they drew 1:1 at home while winning 1:0 away. In the next round, they defeated Dinamo Brest 0:3 in the away leg after a 1:1 draw at home.
They have signed the young Austrian forward Adrian Grbic, along with Stefan Nutz and Simon Piesinger in midfield. All of the three players have been signed on free transfers.
GENT (Bel)
The Belgian club finished 4th last year in the league, edging Oostende on goal difference. They had also lost the first match of the new season with the scoreline being 2:3.
Prior to the start of the season, they played three friendlies, out of which they won two, and drew one. The first leg was a frustrating one as they failed to capitalize on the chances created by the team and ended up drawing 1:1.
Gent has been pretty active in the transfer market so far. They have signed Croatian midfielder Andrijasevic for 4.35 millions from Rijeka, while bringing attackers Mamadou Sylla from KAS Eupen and Lior Inbrum from Ashdod for another 5.85 million Euros.
ALTACH (Aut) vs. GENT (Bel) – Match Prediction:
Like the first leg of the Europa League third qualifying round, this match will most probably be a close affair. Moreover, Altach will be motivated as they already have an away goal, and hence will look to be defensive. Gent will use this opportunity to exploit the spaces and score goals. Therefore, my prediction is an away win for Gent. Also, I will go with both teams to score.
MY PICK: GENT (+134)
Additional Pick: Both teams to score YES (-110)
DOMZALE (Slo) vs. SC FREIBURG (Ger)
Three-way: 1: Domzale +300; X: +258 Draw; 2: SC Freiburg +106
Spread +0.5: Domzale -114; SC Freiburg +104
Total +2.5: Over +108; Under -115
DOMZALE (Slo)
Domzale finished outside the top three in the league last year, and hence weren’t eligible to qualify through league placing as they came 4th. However, they won the domestic cup, which gave them entry to the Europa League qualifiers.
They had won all four of their qualifying matches in the previous two rounds. The first round saw them defeat Flora by 2:0, and away by 2:3. This was followed by a 2:1 win away against Valur, followed by a 3:2 home triumph. However, they lost the first leg of this Europa League qualifying round in a close affair at Freiburg.
Their main signing in this window has been of Slovenian right back Tilen Klemencic for 150 thousand Euros. Along with him, they have signed many more youngsters; midfielders Domen Jugovar, Nermin Hodzic, along with keeper Ajdin Mulalic, all coming on free transfers.
SC FREIBURG (Ger)
Freiburg missed out on a direct qualification to the group stages of the Europa League by just one point as they finished 7th in the league. Even though they had a leaky defense, they managed to grab enough results to reach the top seven.
They have played four friendlies so far, out of which they won 3 and lost one. in this period, they have scored a massive 15 goals, while conceding three.
They have made some good signings so far. They have managed to sign Dortmund youngster Pascal Stenzel for €4 million, while also bringing Florian Niederlechner from Mainz to add to their firepower in a deal worth €2.3 million. They have snapped up Leicester City youngster Bartosz Kapustka on a season long loan deal too.
DOMZALE (Slo) vs. SC FREIBURG (Ger) – Match Prediction:
Even though the scoreline from the first leg indicate that the match was a close affair, the real story was a bit different as the scoreline could have been a lot bigger had Freiburg been more clinical. Keeping that in mind, I think that the German team will be able to win this match too. Therefore my prediction here will be an away win.
MY PICK: SC FREIBURG (+106)
FENERBAHCE (Tur) vs. STURM GRAZ (Aut)
Three-Way: 1: Fenerbahce -200; X: +409 Draw; 2: Sturm Graz +650
Spread -1: Fenerbahce -125; Sturm Graz +119
Total +2.5: Over -123; Under +116
FENERBAHCE (Tur)
Fenerbahce finished last season in the Turkish League at the 3rd spot only due to a superior goal difference to Galatasaray, as both the teams were well off from the top, and tied at 64 points.
Fener hasn’t been in the best of forms in their last friendly matches. They have played four matches in the pre season, losing two of them, and drawing the other two. The first leg match of this Europa League round was their first victory in five matches.
They have recruited some big names so far in the team. Midfielders Valbuena from Lyon and Nabil Dirar from Monaco have both swapped the French league for the Turkish top flight, in deal worth 3.5 million and 1.5 million respectively. They have also recruited experienced keeper Carlos Kameni and Chilean right back Mauricio Isla on free transfers.
STURM GRAZ (Aut)
Graz has made a really good start to the season as they have won both of their first two league games. They have scored 6 goals, while conceding 4 during these two matches.
As they started out from the second Europa League round of the qualifiers, this is going to be their fourth match in the qualification process. In the second round, they recovered from a 0:1 home loss against Mladost to have a thumping 3:0 win away and progress to the third round, where they have lost the first leg by 1:2.
All their arrivals in this transfer window have been free transfers so far. They have signed Bayern Munich youngster Patrick Puchegger in defense. They have also added young Austrian attackers Fabian Schubert and Oliver Filip from SV Ried and Liefering respectively. Joining them is Brazilian youngster Luan who accompanies his Liefering team Filip into the squad.
FENERBAHCE (Tur) vs. STURM GRAZ (Aut) – Match Prediction:
The first leg match was an entertaining one as both the teams played attacking football. Fenerbahce won only by one goal, but considering the fact that this match will be a home match for the Turkish team, I’ll put my money on a home win.
MY PICK: Fenerbahce AH -1 (-125)
