Preview: Ferencvaros vs Trabzonspor - prediction, team news, lineups

Ferencvaros host Trabzonspor at Groupama Arena on Thursday in the second leg of their UEFA Europa League playoff tie, with the Hungarian champions holding a narrow advantage after their 1-0 victory in the opening leg in Turkey.

Kristoffer Zachariassen's first-half header was enough to give Ferencvaros the advantage, meaning Trabzonspor must win in Budapest if they are to reach the Europa League league phase.

Match preview

Ferencvaros return to Groupama Arena with a valuable lead after Zachariassen's 17th-minute header separated the sides in last week's first leg.

The Norwegian midfielder finished a well-worked attack from the right, rising to head past Andre Onana and give the visitors an early advantage, and then the team defended that lead effectively, restricting the opposition to relatively few clear opportunities and securing a clean sheet.

The Hungarian champions were also helped by Chibuike Nwaiwu's dismissal in the sixth minute of stoppage time, with the Trabzonspor defender now suspended for Thursday's return fixture.

Balazs Borbely's side have already negotiated a demanding qualifying campaign, eliminating Gornik Zabrze in the previous round after earlier victories over Vojvodina and Twente.

Their home form provides further encouragement, with Ferencvaros having won two and drawn one of their three European matches at Groupama Arena this season, while they also drew their only domestic home fixture, leaving them unbeaten in four matches on their own ground.

History also favours the hosts who beat Trabzonspor 3-2 at Groupama Arena when the teams met in the Europa League group stage during the 2022-23 campaign.

Trabzonspor, however, head to Budapest with renewed confidence after responding to their European disappointment with an important domestic victory.

Fatih Tekke's side defeated Istanbul Basaksehir 2-1 on Sunday, with Mohamed Salah scoring both goals on his first Super Lig start for the club.

Salah opened the scoring in the eighth minute after capitalising on a goalkeeper's mistake before restoring Trabzonspor's lead three minutes into the second half after Basaksehir had equalised from the penalty spot.

The Egyptian's influence provides Trabzonspor with a significantly different attacking threat compared with the first leg, and his ability to create chances and attack defenders from the right should force Ferencvaros to be more cautious about committing numbers forward.

Trabzonspor have now won one, drawn one and lost one of their opening three matches this season, but defensive consistency remains a concern, having conceded in every game so far, while Nwaiwu's suspension creates another problem for Tekke to solve at the back.

Ferencvaros Europa League form:

Ferencvaros form (all competitions):

Trabzonspor Europa League form:

Trabzonspor form (all competitions):

Team News

Ferencvaros have no fresh injury concerns and should be able to name a largely unchanged side after enjoying a full week to prepare for the return leg.

Zachariassen is expected to retain his place after scoring the decisive goal in Turkey, while Lenny Joseph should provide pace and movement in attack.

Philippe Rommens and Marius Corbu are expected to operate in central midfield, with Borbely likely to demand greater control from his team after they managed only 34% possession in the first leg.

Trabzonspor will be without Nwaiwu following his late red card, with Samet Akaydin expected to replace him in central defence.

Okay Yokuslu and Arseniy Batagov were unavailable for the European squad because of their respective fitness situations, while Tim Jabol-Folcarelli remains sidelined with a knee injury.

There is also intrigue surrounding Fabinho, who joined Trabzonspor on a two-year contract on Monday, as the former Liverpool and Al-Ittihad midfielder reunited with Salah in Turkey, but his arrival just two days before the second leg makes an immediate European debut difficult to predict.

Ferencvaros possible starting lineup:

Dibusz; Nagy, Gomez, Raemaekers, Cadu; Dele, Rommens, Corbu, O'Dowda; Joseph, Zachariassen

Trabzonspor possible starting lineup:

Onana; Pina, Savic, Akaydin, Cabral; Bouchouari, Kabasakal; Salah, Nayir, Saviolo; Onuachu

We say: Ferencvaros 1-1 Trabzonspor (Aggregate: 2-1)

Ferencvaros' first-leg advantage and ability to defend narrow leads make them slight favourites to complete the job in Budapest.

We expect the visitors to have to attack for long periods, but the hosts should be comfortable allowing them possession and looking for opportunities in transition, with Borbely's side having enough defensive discipline to avoid defeat and should progress with a 2-1 aggregate victory.

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