With everything still to play for in the final two rounds of Europa League group stage games, Red Star Belgrade and Trabzonspor will do battle in Serbia on Thursday.
The visitors currently sit second with six points from their four outings, while the hosts will be pushing to leapfrog them having only picked up one win thus far.
Match preview
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Red Star Belgrade find themselves in the Europa League group stage having fallen at the final hurdle in Champions League qualifying, as Maccabi Haifa won their playoff tie 5-4 on aggregate courtesy of a Milan Pavkov own goal in the 90th minute of the second leg.
After that late agony, The Red-Whites set out to at least advance to the knockout stage of Europe's secondary competition, but they endured a slow start, firstly losing 1-0 at home to Monaco before being beaten 2-1 by Thursday's opponents to remain without a point after two matches.
Milos Milojevic's side did then put a first win on the board at home to Ferencvaros, with Guelor Kanga hitting a brace alongside goals from Stefan Mitrovic and Aleksandar Katai in a 4-1 triumph, but they were unable to build on that with another three-point haul in the reverse fixture, losing 2-1 in Hungary after Mitrovic had initially drawn them level early in the second half.
Since that disappointing defeat gave their qualification hopes a hit, Red Star Belgrade have continued their dominant form on the domestic front, continuing their unbeaten start to the Serbian SuperLiga table, now standing at 15 games, with three more consecutive victories, most recently beating Radnicki Nis 2-1 thanks to a brace from Aleksandar Pesic, with the winner coming in the 97th minute.
Now with just two group games to go and a three-point gap to bridge if they are to even finish second place and book a spot in the Europa Conference League knockout stage, the Serbian outfit will know they need a victory on Thursday to stay in contention.
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They meet a Trabzonspor side also hoping to close a three-point gap above them in their bid to top the group and take the only available place in the round of 16.
The Turkish Champions also dropped out of Champions League qualifying in the playoff round, and after a defeat to Ferencvaros, they would quickly put their first Europa League points on the board at home to Red Star Belgrade, as Marek Hamsik and Trezeguet got on the scoresheet in a 2-1 victory.
Abdullah Avci's side would then fall to a 3-1 defeat away at Monaco but managed to stay in contention at the top end of the group with a 4-0 thrashing of the French outfit in the reverse fixture at home, as they went ahead through a Malang Sarr own goal before Vitor Hugo, Enis Bardhi and Trezeguet got on the scoresheet in the second half.
They now travel to Serbia on the back of an important victory in their Turkish Super Lig title defence, as a Hamsik goal made the only difference in a 1-0 triumph over Sivasspor after consecutive league draws, with Karadeniz Firtinasi now two points off the summit of their domestic top flight.
Currently occupying second place in the group, which would see them earn a place in the Europa Conference league knockout stage, Trabzonspor will be keen to move level on points with Ferencvaros to improve their chances of continuing in the continent's secondary competition but can only focus on returning to Turkey with a win and hoping the group leaders slip up.
Team News
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Red Star Belgrade's attack will again be led by Aleksandar Pesic, who took his tally to eight goals for the season in all competitions with the decisive brace in their recent league victory over Radnicki Nis.
He will likely be flanked by Aleksandar Katai and Stefan Mitrovic, who has netted two goals in three Europa League appearances following a summer switch from Radnicki Nis, in Milojevic's preferred 4-3-3 setup.
Guelor Kanga is another key attacking threat from the midfield, having also hit eight goals so far this season, including two in the group stage, both coming in the victory over Ferencvaros, and he could be joined by Sekou Sanogo and Mirko Ivanic in the engine room.
Trabzonspor will remain without striker Maxi Gomez for Thursday's trip, as the summer signing continues to serve a Europa League suspension following his red card early in their defeat away at Monaco.
In his absence, Umut Bozok should lead the line in a 4-2-3-1 setup, with the likes of Anastasios Bakasetas and Enis Bardhi on hand to offer further attacking support.
Slovakian veteran Marek Hamsik should again play alongside Jean-Philippe Gbamin at the base of midfield, while Trezeguet will be a threat on the wing having notched up five goals since his summer arrival from Aston Villa, with two coming in four group-stage appearances and three coming in the Turkish Super Lig.
Red Star Belgrade possible starting lineup:
Borjan; Gobeljic, Dragovic, Erakovic, Rodic; Kanga, Ivanic, Sanogo; Katai, Pesic, Mitrovic
Trabzonspor possible starting lineup:
Cakir; Turkmen, Bartra, Hugo, Elmali; Hamsik, Gbamin; Trezeguet, Bakasetas, Bardhi; Bozok
We say: Red Star Belgrade 1-1 Trabzonspor
Even with Red Star Belgrade being far from their best in this year's group stage, the Turkish champions face a tough trip on Thursday for a game that is bound to be hotly contested given that the fight for second place is somewhat riding on this match.
The hosts may not be strong enough to see off their visitors, though, and we see the clash ending in a draw, despite the fact that Milojevic's side will likely need all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
