Preview: Inter Turku vs Istanbul Basaksehir - prediction, team news, lineups

Meeting for the second time in just over a week, Inter Turku and Istanbul Basaksehir continue their bids to qualify for the league phase of the Conference League, with the visitors having progressed through a first-round tie against Sarajevo while Thursday's hosts entered the competition in the second qualifying round.

The sides head into the return leg after playing out a 1-1 draw in Turkey last week, where Clinton Jephta handed the Finnish outfit an early lead before Emin Bayram scored a leveller shortly after the break for Nuri Sahin's side.

Match preview

Based in the Finnish city of Turku, Inter earned their place in the Conference League qualifiers after finishing second in the Veikkausliiga last season, marking their return to European qualifying for the first time since their first-round exit to Drita in 2022.

They had failed to win a European tie on aggregate for more than two decades before facing Sarajevo earlier this month, but Vesa Vasara's men ended that run by following up a 1-1 draw in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a 2-1 home victory.

That 3-2 aggregate triumph booked their place in the second qualifying round thanks to a late winner from Jephta, who was once again on target in last week's first leg against Istanbul Basaksehir.

Inter have since returned to league action as they continue their pursuit of only a second Finnish top-flight title, having last lifted the Veikkausliiga trophy in 2008.

However, their title challenge suffered a setback with a 2-1 defeat to Gnistan, allowing league leaders KuPS to move five points clear after 17 league matches.

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As for Thursday's visitors, they travel to Finland still searching for their first competitive victory since a final-day win over Gaziantep in May, a result that left the Grey Owls agonisingly short of securing a Europa League qualifying place.

Despite losing just one of their final eight Super Lig matches last season, Sahin's men ultimately finished 20 points adrift of the champions, with a second successive fifth-placed finish extending their wait for another league title to six years.

Basaksehir prepared for their European campaign with five pre-season friendlies and entered last week's first leg on the back of consecutive victories, including an impressive 2-1 win over RB Salzburg.

Heading into Sahin's first full season in charge, they will once again hope their defensive resilience can provide the platform for success.

Only two teams conceded fewer than Basaksehir's 35 goals across 34 Super Lig matches last season.

Inter Turku Conference League form:

Inter Turku form (all competitions):

Istanbul Basaksehir Conference League form:

Istanbul Basaksehir form (all competitions):

Team News

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Vasara is expected to name the same starting XI that earned a creditable draw in Turkey after coming through the weekend's league fixture without any fresh injury concerns.

Alie Conteh started the first leg before appearing as a substitute in Sunday's league defeat, where he found the net from the penalty spot, and the forward should therefore retain his place in attack.

Although Ilari Kangasniemi was sent off in Inter's most recent league outing, the suspension does not carry over into UEFA competition, meaning the defender is available once again.

Jephta has scored just twice this season, but both goals have proved decisive in Inter's Conference League campaign, and he is expected to start on the wing again.

Basaksehir also have the luxury of naming an unchanged side and arrive fresher after not playing since last week's first leg.

Sahin is expected to stick with the 4-2-3-1 system that served his team well in Istanbul, with first-leg goalscorer Bayram continuing in central defence.

Inter Turku possible starting lineup:

Huuhtanen; Saarinen, Kuittinen, Kangasniemi, Niska; Tuominen, Laine, Ampofo; Essomba, Conteh, Jephta

Istanbul Basaksehir possible starting lineup:

Sengezer; Sahiner, Bayram, Ba, Karbownik; Gunes, Kemen; San, Shomurodov, Brnic; Yildrim

We say: Inter Turku 1-2 Istanbul Basaksehir (2-3 aggregate)

The first leg shows how closely matched these two sides are, and another competitive encounter looks likely in Finland.

However, Basaksehir should improve upon last week's display and, with their greater European experience and superior squad depth, we expect them to edge a tight contest and progress to the third qualifying round with extra time potentially coming into play.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.