Preview: Vestri vs Qarabag FK - prediction, team news, lineups

Holding a strong lead from last week's first leg, Qarabag FK will expect to finish off minnows Vestri when they conclude their Europa League qualifier on Thursday evening.

Three goals up after winning comfortably in Baku, the Azeri side are on track to meet either CSKA Sofia or Derry City in the second qualifying round.

Match preview

Having accrued plenty of recent experience, it was no surprise that Qarabag kicked off their latest continental campaign with a victory over European debutants Vestri.

Zakaria Sawo opened the scoring before Abdellah Zoubir struck on the cusp of half time, and Renaldo Cephas added a late third at Tofiq Bahramov Stadium.

That marked a successful return to competitive action for the Horsemen, who finally surrendered their domestic dominance to Sabah last season.

Qurban Qurbanov's side had to settle for second place in the Azerbaijan Premier League, meaning they missed out on claiming the title for just a second time in 10 years.

Nonetheless, Qarabag did reach the Champions League proper, recording wins over Benfica and Copenhagen before losing 9-3 to Newcastle United in the knockout playoffs.

That followed a memorable run to the last 16 of the 2023-24 Europa League, a competition they aim to make a big impact on this term.

In charge of the club since 2008, Qurbanov saw his team suffer four losses from five Champions League away games in 2025-26, but that was against much stronger opposition.

By comparison with Qarabag's glamorous European opponents last year, little Vestri are only taking their first steps into UEFA competition.

The Icelandic club play in the second tier domestically but unexpectedly qualified for this season's Europa League by winning the cup.

Based in the municipality of Isafjordur, they secured a first major trophy by beating Valur, partly compensating for relegation from the top flight.

However, head coach David Lamude is now under some pressure, as Vestri currently occupy a mid-table place in Iceland's second division, having taken just two points from their last three league games.

After drawing against Throttur Reykjavik and Grindavik, they were unsurprisingly affected by making a 7,000km midweek journey to Baku, going down 5-2 to Fylkir last time out.

Vestri Europa League form:

Vestri form (all competitions):

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Qarabag FK Europa League form:

Team News

Qarabag may have lost Colombian striker Camilo Duran to Celtic, but Qurbanov still has some firepower at his disposal, including his son Musa Qurbanli.

Following their first-leg strikes, Sawo and Zoubir - the latter of whom has racked up 115 appearances in UEFA competition - should also feature in the visitors' attack.

Like Qurbanli, Jamaica international Cephas must hope for promotion from the bench, having scored as a substitute on his competitive club debut.

Meanwhile, Vestri could make changes after conceding three goals last week, then five in the first half against Fylkir.

One player unlikely to give way, though, is first-choice goalkeeper Marvin Steinarsson, and Cafu Phete should continue at the heart of the hosts' defence.

Young winger Emmanuel Duah and Macedonian defender Konstantin Cheshmedjiev could also feature; the pair were Vestri's only men with any prior experience of European football before last week's debut in Baku.

Vestri possible starting lineup:

Steinarsson; Gardarsson, Phete, Cheshmedjiev, Svavarsson; Fall, Hauksson, Stensson, Hafthorsson; Duah, Hermannsson

Qarabag FK possible starting lineup:

Kochalski; Silva, Huseynov, Varkonyi, Jafarguliyev; Jankovic, Kady, Bicalho; Kashchuk, Sawo, Cephas