Preview: NEC vs Levski Sofia - prediction, team news, lineups

NEC Nijmegen host Levski Sofia in the UEFA Europa League league phase at Goffertstadion in Nijmegen on Thursday.

Dick Schreuder's side, playing continental football for the first time since 2009, go into matchday two off the back of a battling 1-1 draw at Ajax, still seeking a response to their 5-0 opening defeat at Juventus, while Julio Velazquez's Levski arrive on the back of a 2-0 win at Cherno More Varna that kept them top of the Bulgarian First League.

Match preview

NEC's third-place finish in the 2025-26 Eredivisie was the best league placing in the club's history and opened the door to European qualification for the first time in 17 years.

That European adventure began in Champions League qualifying, where NEC beat Olympiacos 2-1 on aggregate before a 6-1 aggregate defeat to Bodo/Glimt in the playoff round dropped them into the Europa League.

Schreuder's high-pressing, attacking approach, nicknamed "Dicki-taka" by Dutch media, has been the defining story of his tenure since he replaced Rogier Meijer in the summer of 2025.

The club's boldest summer move was the free-transfer arrival of Dusan Tadic, the former Ajax captain returning to Dutch football to lead the line alongside Bryan Linssen and Tjaronn Chery.

That trio were all involved as NEC fought back from an early header by Tolu Arokodare to draw 1-1 at Ajax on October 10, Chery converting the equalising penalty after Jorthy Mokio fouled Noe Lebreton, a result that left NEC with two wins, three draws and three losses from eight league matches.

NEC have also lost 1-3 to Feyenoord and 0-3 at Cambuur this season, either side of 2-2 and 1-1 draws with Excelsior and Go Ahead Eagles, a run that has shown both their attacking threat and a defence breached far too easily for Schreuder's liking.

Levski Sofia arrive in Nijmegen top of the Bulgarian First Professional League, a position that has become familiar under Spanish coach Julio Velazquez.

Their place in the Europa League league phase followed a lengthy run through Champions League qualifying, where they beat Borac Banja Luka 5-1, Universitatea Craiova 3-2 and Kairat Almaty 2-0 on aggregate before a 4-0 aggregate defeat to AEK Athens in the playoff round, following a 0-0 first leg in Sofia, dropped them into Europe's second-tier competition.

Brazilian forward Reinaldo, a summer signing from Santa Clara, has already contributed four goals in his first season in Sofia and offers Velazquez a focal point up front alongside veteran scorer Everton Bala.

Levski's most recent outing was a 2-0 win away at Cherno More Varna on Sunday, a result that kept them clear at the top of the table with 28 points from 10 matches, one point and a game in hand ahead of second-placed CSKA Sofia.

Earlier in September, that form had been disrupted by a 2-4 home defeat to local rivals CSKA Sofia in a Bulgarian Super Cup and a goalless draw away at Botev Vratsa in the domestic league, either side of home and away wins over CSKA 1948 Sofia and Slavia Sofia.

In Europe, Levski's own Europa League campaign began with a narrow 0-1 home defeat to Red Bull Salzburg, a reminder of the gap in quality between domestic and continental competition.

NEC Europa League form:

NEC form (all competitions):

Levski Sofia Europa League form:

Levski Sofia form (all competitions):

Team News

Bram Nuytinck remains a long-term absentee with an ankle injury that is not expected to clear up until late November.

Emre Mor is working his way back from a groin injury and is targeting a mid-October return, which could leave his involvement against Levski in the balance.

Levski's squad was refreshed significantly over the summer, with Serginho, Reinaldo and Alex Centelles among the new arrivals now integrated into Velazquez's first-choice XI.

Goalkeeper Svetoslav Vutsov has started Levski's recent matches in both the First League and Europe, but was rested last weekend against Cherno, he is expecteed to return between the posts at Goffertstadion.

Kristian Dimitrov's experience at the back has been a consistent feature of Levski's defence this season, and he is expected to retain his place alongside Christian Makoun in central defence.

NEC possible starting lineup:

Crettaz; Bras, Schuurs, Fonville; Kers, Nejasmic, Lebreton, Storm; Chery, Tadic, Linssen

Levski Sofia possible starting lineup:

Vutsov; Maicon, Makoun, Dimitrov, Aldair; Trdin, Soula; El Moubarik, Serginho, Everton Bala, Reinaldo

We say: NEC 2-1 Levski Sofia

NEC's defensive issues make a comfortable afternoon unlikely, but the way Schreuder's side came from behind to hold Ajax should give the Goffertstadion crowd belief that the Juventus mauling was more about the Italian side's quality than any lasting flaw in the approach.

Levski have shown they can trouble teams on the counter and their First League form points to a well-organised group, but matching NEC's attacking intent at home, with Tadic and Chery pulling the strings, looks a tall order without the benefit of recent European big-match experience.

Expect an open, end-to-end contest in which NEC's firepower just about outweighs Levski's defensive solidity.

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