Preview: Molde vs. Legia Warsaw - prediction, team news, lineups

Molde face Legia Warsaw in the first leg of their Europa Conference League preliminary knockout round tie on Thursday, in what will be the hosts' first competitive outing since December.

While Legia returned to league action at the weekend after a winter break, Molde's new league season does not start until April, as they will come into this fixture from the cold, both literally and metaphorically.

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Match preview

After finishing their league season in fifth-place back in December, Molde did make it an ultimately successful year, beating title winners Bodo/Glimt in the Norwegian Cup final.

Their last competitive encounter was less than satisfactory though, as rampant Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen thrashed Erling Moe's side 5-1 in mid-December.

That ended any hopes of them finishing second in emphatic fashion, as Azeri champions Qarabag sealed their spot in the Europa League knockouts instead.

Molde were fortunate to be drawn with Scandinavian neighbours Hacken, who ended the group without a point on their European debut, meaning the Norwegians were always assured of at least dropping in the UECL and continuing their season on the continent into the New Year.

With their league season not starting until April though, Norwegian sides will always be up against it in European competitions, as they could end up playing two full knockout rounds before the return of domestic action.

Molde did feature in the Atlantic Cup last week though, a competition held in Western Europe for nations who do not play during the summer, and they beat Midtjylland before going down to Champions League participants Copenhagen.

The two clubs have met before, and Legia came out on top, knocking Molde out on away goals in Champions League qualifying after two draws in 2013.

The Polish side will fancy themselves as favourites here too, given that they are now back in the groove of competitive action following a 1-0 win at Ruch Chorzow at the weekend.

Despite once so often being a dominant force in Poland, Legia are not quite hitting the same heights, as they sit down in fourth, six points adrift of leaders Jagiellonia Bialystok.

Kosta Runjaic's men have been active with friendlies throughout January with this tie in mind, and they had beaten domestic clubs, as well as Dynamo Kiev and Ordabasy, before the weekend win over Ruch.

Recent European form has not been quite as impressive though, as the Warsaw club have lost 13 of their previous 15 away games in UEFA competitions proper, despite finishing second behind Aston Villa in the group stage this season.

They have just one win on their six trips to Norway too, but that did come in their most recent, seeing off Bodo/Glimt back in 2020.

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Team News

After selling two of their three joint-top scorers over the winter window in Ola Brynhildsen and Magnus Grodem, Molde will likely look towards Kristian Eriksen for some attacking inspiration here.

Eriksen scored four goals in five Europa League group stage appearances earlier this season and will take on the mantle going forward following the exit of two of his partners-in-crime.

On the injury front, Emil Breivik will face a late fitness test to be available here, while Erling Knudtzon and Jacob Karlstrom are both confirmed absentees.

Legia have also suffered in the winter transfer window, as Ernest Muci left for Besiktas, while Bartosz Slisz moved for a substantial fee to Atlanta United in MLS.

Muci will be a big miss in attack after scoring five goals in Europe before his move to Turkey, including a spectacular strike away to Aston Villa.

Michal Kucharczyk has been brought back to Polish football by Legia in response to Muci's departure after a brief spell in Uzbekistan, but he is yet to feature.

Jurgen Celhaka picked up an injury during the winter break and will miss out here, while Ramil Mustafaev has also been a long-term absentee for the visitors.

Molde possible starting lineup: Petersen; Haugan, Oyvann, Bjornbak; Linnes, Eriksen, Kaasa, Moller Daehli, Haugen; Gulbrandsen, Eikrem

Legia Warsaw possible starting lineup: Tobiasz; Pankov, Kapuadi, Yuri Ribiero; Wszolek, Augustyniak, Elitim, Kun; Josue, Pekhart, Marc Gual

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We say: Molde 0-1 Legia Warsaw

Molde's rustiness may be a problem having not played a competitive fixture in almost two months, while the departure of two of their top scorers from last season will leave a gaping hole in attack.

Legia have only recently returned to action and are depleted following the January window themselves, but showed good form in the group stage to finish just one point behind Aston Villa, and a win on their return at the weekend will do them the world of good.

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