Preview: Shkendija vs Ludogorets Razgrad - prediction, team news, lineups

Looking to book a spot in the league phase of this season's Europa League, Shkendija and Ludogorets Razgrad clash in Skopje on Thursday night for the first leg of their playoff tie.

The Ballists dropped out of UEFA's top-tier competition recently in the qualifying rounds, and the same can be said for the Bulgarian visitors.

Match preview

Shkendija of North Macedonia commenced their European adventure for the 2025-26 campaign in the early stages of Champions League qualifying, pitting their wits against Welsh giants The New Saints, who were knocked out by an aggregate scoreline of 2-1.

Romanian royalty was next on the agenda in the Champions League for the Ballists, who picked up a 3-1 aggregate success over FCSB, a side who were highly competitive in the league phase of the Europa League during the 2024-25 term.

However, Shkendija's impressive run in the Champions League was soon to be halted in sensational style by Qarabag, who picked up 1-0 and 5-1 successes over the North Macedonians to book a spot just two matches away from the league phase of that particular competition.

All two of the Ballists' defeats so far this season out of eight games have arrived versus Qarabag, meaning that Thursday's hosts should be confident of beating their Bulgarian counterparts over two legs and advancing into the Europa League proper.

Focusing on domestic form, Ludogorets have made a near-flawless start to their defence of the Bulgarian crown, winning four and drawing one of their five top-tier matches since the beginning of play, meaning that they sit top of the standings.

The Eagles' sole loss of the competitive schedule to date arrived at the intimidating base of Hungarian powerhouses Ferencvaros on August 12, when a brace from Barnabas Varga and a late strike from Gabor Szalai secured a massive victory for the hosts.

Since being unceremoniously dumped out of Champions League qualification at the penultimate hurdle, Ludogorets are now on a mission to make amends by reaching the league phase of the Europa League, where the likes of Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa await.

After netting just eight goals across 51 competitive appearances for the Eagles last term, 32-year-old Ivaylo Chochev has made an excellent start to 2025-26, scoring three goals across five appearances in the Bulgarian top flight for the champions.

Shkendija form (all competitions):

Ludogorets Razgrad form (all competitions):

Team News

There could be a number of changes to the Shkendija team which lost 5-1 at the hostile home of Qarabag in the Champions League earlier this month.

Liridon Latifi and Kamer Qaka were both hooked off at the interval in Azerbaijan, with the pair set to drop to the bench for Thursday's clash.

After keeping a solid clean sheet on the domestic scene against Lokomotiv Sofia, Sergio Padt should retain his spot in net for Ludogorets.

That would mean that German Hendrik Bonmann loses his European berth after starting the battering at the hands of Ferencvaros.

Shkendija possible starting lineup:

Gaye; Trumci, Fetai, Cake, Webster; Ramadani, Alhassan, Krasniqi, Zejnullai, Tamba; Ibraimi

Ludogorets Razgrad possible starting lineup:

Padt; Son, Verdon, Kurtulus, Nedyalkov; Kaloc, Duarte, Chochev; Marcus, Caio, Bille

We say: Shkendija 1-1 Ludogorets Razgrad

Needing to realistically take an advantage into next week's second leg in Bulgaria, Shkendija will be desperate for victory on Thursday.

Ludogorets have been largely impressive in Europe and domestically this term, so we are expecting them to share of a share of the honours in this one.

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