Slovenian champions Celje welcome Irish outfit Shamrock Rovers to Arena Petrol for the first leg of their Europa League third qualifying round tie on Thursday evening.
The two teams meet for the very first time and are seeking to progress to the main stage of the newly-expanded 2024-25 Europa League.
Match preview
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Celje have dropped down into the Europa League qualifiers after they suffered a 6-1 aggregate defeat to Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League second round qualifiers, with a 1-1 first-leg draw followed by a heavy 5-0 defeat in the reverse fixture on July 30.
Albert Riera's side celebrated winning their second Slovenian PrvaLiga title last season, finishing 13 points clear of their nearest challengers Maribor, and they began the defence of their top-flight crown with a 2-1 home victory over NK Bravo just over three weeks ago.
However, Celje suffered their first league defeat of the new season last Saturday when they were beaten 1-0 by Mura, with a 10th-minute strike from Mark Strajnar ultimately enough to settle the closely-fought contest.
The Yellow and Blues will be keen to return to winning ways against Shamrock Rovers as they endeavour to qualify for the main stage of a European competition for the first time in their 104-year history.
Like Celje, Shamrock Rovers have dropped down into the Europa League qualifiers after they were condemned to a 6-2 aggregate defeat to Sparta Prague in the Champions League second round qualifiers at the end of July, having previously beaten Vikingur Reykjavik 2-1 on aggregate in the first round.
A 4-2 second-leg defeat in Czechia just over a week ago represented their third loss in a row across all competitions, but they bounced back with a much-needed victory in the League of Ireland Premier Division last Friday, beating Waterford 2-1 away from home.
The contest was level at 1-1 heading into the final five minutes until Graham Burke came off the substitutes' bench to net his first league goal since May and snatch maximum points for the Hoops.
Stephen Bradley's side have subsequently climbed to third in the Irish top-flight standings and with 12 matches remaining, they sit seven points behind second-placed Derry City - who have played a game more - and nine points adrift of league leaders Shelbourne.
Shamrock Rovers will now shift their attention to the Europa League and are bidding to qualify for the main stage of the competition for just the second time in their history having previously competed in the 2011-12 group stage.
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Team News
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Celje will assess the fitness of midfielder Tamar Svetlin who has missed the last two matches with an unspecified issue, while defender Damjan Vuklisevic is suspended following his red card in the second-leg defeat to Slovan Bratislava.
The absence of Vuklisevic could see either Klemen Nemanic or new signing Slavko Bralic handed a start at centre-back alongside David Zec.
Former Newcastle United winger Rolando Aarons was handed his first start of the season last time out, but he could be replaced on the right flank by Aljosa Matko, who has contributed to three goals (two goals, one assist) in six games so far this season.
As for Shamrock Rovers, experienced striker Rory Gaffney has been sidelined since the end of April with an unspecified injury and will not recover in time for Thursday's contest.
However, Bradley's side could be boosted by the return of top scorer Johnny Kenny, who has scored 10 goals in his last 16 appearances and is hoping to shake off a knock to feature against Celje.
Josh Honohan will be pushing to return to the starting lineup as either a right-sided centre-back or a right wing-back, while Markus Poom and Richie Towell could be recalled in centre-midfield.
Celje possible starting lineup:
Stubljar; Karnicnik, Bralic, Zec, Krefl; Bobicanec, Kvesic, Popovic; Matko, Kucys, Brnic
Shamrock Rovers possible starting lineup:
Pohls; Hoare, Lopes, Grace; Honohan, Watts, Poom, Towell, Kavanagh; Greene, Kenny
We say: Celje 1-1 Shamrock Rovers
With both teams keen to remain in the tie heading into next week's second leg, a tight affair could be played out on Thursday. Celje have suffered a dip in form in recent weeks, but they may do just enough to claim a share of the spoils against a Shamrock Rovers outfit who have won just two of their last 10 away games in all competitions.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
