Preview: Dinamo Zagreb vs. Genk - prediction, team news, lineups

Having missed out on progress to the last 16 in the Europa League, Genk travel to Croatia to take on Dinamo Zagreb in the first leg of their knockout round playoff tie at Stadion Maksimir on Thursday.

Without a victory in two previous meetings with their Croatian opponents, Nicky Hayen's team will hope to be third-time lucky this week as they seek an encouraging result to carry into next week's second leg at Cegeka Arena.

Match preview

Mario Kovacevic’s Dinamo endured a disappointing league phase in the Europa League, failing to build on an impressive start.

They were undefeated after 270 minutes, accumulating seven points from nine following a pair of 3-1 victories over Fenerbahce and Maccabi Tel Aviv, before playing out a 1-1 draw at Malmo.

However, heavy defeats against three opponents from Europe’s top five leagues – Celta Vigo, Lille and Real Betis – left Plavi fighting a losing battle for a coveted top eight spot after eight matchdays.

The Blues failed to keep a clean sheet in the opening three matchdays, conceding four in the defeat by Lille and three each in losses to their Spanish rivals, highlighting the gap in class and quality.

Ultimately, four losses in the final five matchdays, following an unbeaten start, cost Modri a top eight position and a place as a seeded side in the knockout playoff, leaving them to finish 23rd, just inside the top 24, and they now aim to extend their unbeaten spell in this fixture.

The teams previously faced off in the group stage of the competition under the old format, with the Zagreb-based side accruing four points from both matches, and a similar set of results would see them progress to the round of 16.

Kovacevic's team enter Thursday on a three-match unbeaten run in the league, having scored seven goals while conceding just one, a streak including home victories over Vukovar '91 (3-1) and Istra (4-0), and the Blues, who previously defeated Lokomotiva (2-0) and FCSB (4-1) at Stadion Maksimir, are aiming for a fifth consecutive success in front of their supporters.

That challenge will not be straightforward against their Belgian opponents, who have not tasted defeat since a 2-1 loss to Zulte Waregem in mid-January.

Since then, the Smurfs have avoided losing in six matches across all competitions, achieving five victories as they push for a championship round spot domestically, narrowly missing out on a top eight berth in Europe.

Hayen's men ended level on 16 points with Roma after eight rounds, with four clubs from fourth to seventh finishing on 17; however, they missed out on qualification due to Roma’s superior goal difference.

Now aiming to move on from that disappointment, one of the more consistent sides in the league phase seeks to continue their impressive continental campaign by ending their two-match winless run against Thursday’s opponents.

Travelling supporters should arrive in Zagreb in good spirits, having already seen their side claim nine points from an available 12 on their travels in the competition, with victories over Rangers (1-0), Braga (4-3) and FC Utrecht (2-0), while suffering a 1-0 reverse at Midtjylland.

Another clean sheet may prove difficult, as Dinamo have scored in all but one home game in 15 matches at Stadion Maksimir, suggesting a fascinating fixture is on the cards.

Dinamo Zagreb Europa League form:

Dinamo Zagreb form (all competitions):

Genk Europa League form:

Genk form (all competitions):

Team News

Ismael Bennacer has not featured since exiting a league game with injury in late January, and the Dinamo midfielder's hamstring strain looks set to keep him out of Thursday's first leg.

While two-goal midfielder Dejan Ljubicic has departed for Schalke 04, the hosts can still rely on Dion Drena Beljo and Monsef Bakrar, both of whom have four and two Europa League goals this season, respectively.

Although only Ludogorets' Petar Stanic (seven goals) and Nottingham Forest's Igor Jesus (six goals) scored more than Beljo in the league phase, the forward’s goals came from just two matches — braces against Fenerbahce and FCSB — which suggests a broader goal distribution may be necessary to aid the Blues' cause.

Genk, on the other hand, appear to have no injury concerns heading into this first leg, providing Hayen with a boost ahead of the trip to Zagreb.

Even though three-goal forward Hyun-gyu Oh has departed for Besiktas, the Belgian outfit enjoyed a decent spread of goals in the league phase, with Daan Heymans (three) and Konstantinos Karetsas (two) finding the net multiple times.

Heymans and Karetsas have also influenced games through their chance creation and assists, setting up three and two goals respectively, showcasing their dual threat.

Dinamo Zagreb possible starting lineup:

Livakovic; Valincic, Dominguez, McKenna, Vinlof; Stojkovic, Misic, Zajc; Bakrar, Beljo, Hoxha

Genk possible starting lineup:

Lawal; Sadick, Smets, Kayembe; El Ouahdi, Heynen, Heymans, Medina; Ito, Bibout, Karetsas