In the first leg of the Europa Conference League's fourth and final qualifying round, Swedish side Hacken are set to host Heidenheim at Bravida Arena on Thursday.
The home side beat Paide 7-2 on aggregate in the third round of qualifying, while Thursday's game will be the German visitors' first ever match in the competition.
Match preview
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The hosts qualified for the Europa Conference League qualifiers after they finished third in Sweden's top flight with 57 points from 30 games.
In the third round, Hacken breezed past Paide after taking a 6-1 lead in the first leg on August 7 thanks to two goals from Akoua Amane, two from Amor Layouni, and one each from Zeidane Inoussa and Jeremy Agbonifo.
They also comprehensively won their tie against F91 Dudelange in the second round after triumphing in the first leg 6-2 on July 25, before winning the second 6-1 on July 31.
Hacken are currently fifth in the Allsvenskan with 30 points after 18 games and are five points from third-placed Djurgarden, who occupy the division's final Europa Conference League spot.
Boss Pal Arne Johansen will be pleased with his side's recent from given they are unbeaten in their last seven matches and have won five of those fixtures.
![Paul Wanner of Heidenheim against FC Villingen on August 17,2024 [on August 20, 2024]](https://sm.imgix.net/24/34/paul-wanner.jpg?w=640&h=480&auto=compress,format&fit=clip "Paul Wanner of Heidenheim against FC Villingen on August 17,2024 [on August 20, 2024]")
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Opponents Heidenheim had a remarkable Bundesliga campaign in 2023-24 considering they finished eighth despite it being their first ever season in the top flight.
The visitors only qualified for the Conference League playoffs due to Bayer Leverkusen's DFB-Pokal win, as the competition's Europa League spot went to seventh-placed Hoffenheim, and the Bundesliga's Conference League spot was given to the team that finished eighth.
Their Conference League clash on Thursday will also be their first ever match in European competition, and while Leverkusen's title-winning season took the headlines, manager Frank Schmidt's achievements should not go under the radar.
When factoring in pre-season fixtures, Schmidt's side come into the game in strong form having won their last seven matches.
This includes a 4-0 victory on August 17 in the DFB-Pokal against Villingen, a match in which Maximilian Breunig scored a hat-trick.
Heidenheim have also only lost once in their previous 11 competitive away games, though they have just four wins in this period.
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Team News
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Hacken have several injury absentees, including Isak Brusberg and Nikola Zecevic, though both are expected to return at the end of the month.
Jacob Barrett Laursen could be set for an appearance after recently featuring on the bench, but he is unlikely to start.
Axel Lindahl was subbed off after just 39 minutes last time out against Paide on August 13, and he is a doubt for the match.
As for Heidenheim, goalkeeper Thomas Keller has not appeared since August 2023 and is unlikely to feature.
Elsewhere, the visitors could name Kevin Muller in goal, and he may be shielded by a defence of Haktab Omar Traore, Patrick Mainka, Benedikt Gimber and Jonas Fohrenbach.
Hacken possible starting lineup:
Linde; Lunddal, Hammar, Lode, Lundqvist; Dahbo, Gustafson, Amane; Agbonifo, Hrstic, Inoussa
Heidenheim possible starting lineup:
Muller; Traore, Mainka, Gimber, Fohrenbach; Schoppner, Kerber; Scienza, Wanner, Honsak; Kaufmann
We say: Hacken 1-2 Heidenheim
Considering Heidenheim's strong pre-season results, as well as their win in the DFB-Pokal, they will head into the game confident of securing a positive result.
However, given Hacken's goalscoring record in their previous qualifiers, it would not be surprising if they were able to create several chances of their own.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Lewis Nolan
