Preview: Red Bull Salzburg vs Pafos FC - prediction, team news, lineups

On Thursday, Austrian side Red Bull Salzburg will welcome Cypriot outfit Pafos FC to the Red Bull Arena for the first leg of the Europa League third-round qualifying tie.

The winner will go on to face the loser of the Champions League qualifying clash between Mjallby and Slovan Bratislava, while the loser will drop down to the Conference League playoff round.

Match preview

Salzburg have become accustomed to competing in Champions League qualifying, but they have had to settle for a place in the preliminary stages of the Europa League following last season's underwhelming third-placed finish in the Austrian Bundesliga.

That said, die Roten Bullen have recent experience of competing in the Europa League after appearing in last season's league phase following a loss to Club Brugge in the second round of Champions League qualifying.

Salzburg start their latest European campaign under the watch of Danny Rohl, who left his position as Rangers boss to pen a three-year contract with the Austrian giants.

Rohl started his tenure with a dominant 7-1 win over third-tier SV Oberwart in the first round of the OFB Cup, before he oversaw a dramatic 1-0 victory on the opening weekend of the Austrian Bundesliga season.

Red Bull Salzburg were on the verge of being held to a goalless draw by Harberg until Karim Konate scored an 89th-minute winner to snatch all three points.

As their focus turns to European action, the hosts may be able to draw inspiration from the fact they have won both of their previous two games against Cypriot opposition, a 4-1 victory in 2010-11 Champions League qualifying and a 1-0 success over the same team in 2011-12 Europa League qualifying.

Pafos, meanwhile, are competing in European football for the third consecutive season after appearing in the Conference League main draw in 2024-25 and the Champions League league phase in 2025-26.

While they had to settle for a fourth-placed finish in the Cypriot First Division last term, they secured a spot in Europa League qualifying by winning the Cypriot Cup for the second time in three seasons.

In contrast to Thursday's hosts, Pafos entered the qualifying process in the second round, where they staged an impressive fightback to overturn a two-goal first-leg deficit against Croatian side Hajduk Split.

Guga pulled a goal back in the 40th minute of last Thursday's home leg, before David Goldar netted a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser to send the tie to extra time.

With momentum in their favour, Ricardo Sa Pinto's side took the tie away from Hajduk Split with goals from Biel and Joao Correia, sealing a 4-2 aggregate victory.

Pafos would love nothing more than to pick up another win on Thursday, but they may view a draw as a more realistic aim, considering they have won just four of their 13 European away games across the main draw and qualifying of UEFA's three club competitions (D4, L8).

Red Bull Salzburg form (all competitions):

W W

Pafos FC Europa League form:

L W

Team News

John Mellberg and Stefan Lainer have both been included in the squad list for the playoff round despite doubts over their fitness due to their recent injury struggles.

The hosts can no longer call upon Adam Daghim, who recently completed a move to German side Hoffenheim.

Rohl is likely to keep changes to a minimum following Saturday's win over Hartberg, although Konate is pushing for a starting berth after coming off the bench to score the winner.

Meanwhile, Pafos are expected to be without the services of goalkeeper Charalambos Kyriakidis due to an arm injury.

Winger Jaja is set for an extended spell on the sidelines after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury in the second leg against Hajduk Split.

Pafos have since bolstered their attacking options by adding Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu, although he will not be eligible to feature in this tie.

Red Bull Salzburg possible starting lineup:

Zawieschitzky; Veratschnig, Boma, Zabransky, Schmid; Diabate, Barry; Redzic, Diakite, Vertessen; Konate

Pafos FC possible starting lineup:

Majecki; Bruno, Goldar, Luiz, Ioannou; Quina, Sunjic, Guga; Correia, Biel, Lele

We say: Red Bull Salzburg 3-1 Pafos FC

Pafos showed great character in their home tie against Hajduk Split, but they failed to deliver in the away leg, and considering Salzburg are a tougher opponent, we think the visitors will fall short in Austria on Thursday.

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