Still searching for their first points in the Champions League, Red Bull Salzburg travel to the Netherlands to take on Feyenoord at De Kuip on Wednesday night.
While Die Rote Bullen have won only one of their last six away matches in all competitions, their Rotterdam-based counterparts are bidding to win their fourth home match in five games.
Match preview
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Feyenoord have never progressed beyond the group stage in six previous attempts in the Champions League, but there is hope that the Dutch giants will advance to the knockout rounds of this season's newly-formed competition having collected six points from a possible nine available.
After suffering a heavy 4-0 home defeat to Bayer Leverkusen on matchday one, Feyenoord have since travelled to Spain and Portugal to beat Girona 3-2 and Benfica 3-1 respectively, securing maximum points against the latter a fortnight ago - not since 1971 have they won successive European Cup/Champions League away games.
Now approaching the halfway point in the UCL league phase, Brian Priske's men currently sit 16th in the 36-team table and only one point behind the top eight. Victory is the least that Feyenoord will be aiming for in Wednesday's favourable-looking fixture against Salzburg, as tricky tests against Manchester City and Bayern Munich are still to come.
Since beating Benfica, the Rotterdam-based outfit have had mixed fortunes in the Eredivisie, with a 2-0 home defeat to Ajax sandwiched between victories again Utrecht (2-0) and AZ Alkmaar (3-2), beating the latter last weekend to remain fourth in the table and three points behind second-placed Ajax, who have a game in hand.
Feyenoord, who have won three of their last four home games, are now preparing to welcome Austrian opposition to De Kuip for the first time since putting Sturm Graz to the sword 6-0 in the Europa League in September 2022.
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Red Bull Salzburg are one of nine clubs who are still searching for their first victory in the 2024-25 Champions League, and are also one of six teams who are yet to pick up a single point after three matches.
The Austrian champions have suffered disappointing defeats to Sparta Prague, Brest and Dinamo Zagreb by an aggregate score of 9-0, losing 2-0 at home to the latter in their most recent European match a fortnight ago.
Ex-Liverpool assistant coach Pepijn Lijnders has insisted that his team will 'learn and come back stronger' from their poor start in the league phase, but it is difficult to envisage where they could pick up valuable points in the coming weeks and months, as Wednesday's clash against Feyenoord will be followed by encounters with Leverkusen, PSG, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
While Salzburg currently sit 34th in the 36-team UCL table, they also occupy third place in the Austrian Bundesliga standings - five points behind second-placed Rapid Vienna who have played two games more - and were held to a frustrating 0-0 home draw with 10 men by basement club Grazer AK on Saturday.
Die Roten Bullen will be desperate to end their eight-game winless run in the Champions League when they travel to the Netherlands on Wednesday for the first time since beating Ajax 3-0 in the Europa League in February 2014.
Team News
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Feyenoord will be without last season's top scorer Santiago Gimenez (hip), Calvin Stengs, Quilindschy Hartman (both knee), Jordan Lotomba, Ayase Ueda (both hamstring) and this season's leading scorer Antoni Milambo (unspecified) - who has six goals to his name - due to injury.
Gjivai Zechiel has recovered from an ankle injury, but the 20-year-old is not expected to start in centre-midfield ahead of either Hwang In-beom, Quinten Timber or Ramiz Zerrouki.
After scoring as a substitute against AZ last weekend, Brighton loanee Ibrahim Osman will be hoping to force his way back into the first XI ahead of either Igor Paixao or Luka Ivanusec, the latter of whom also scored last time out, while Julian Carranza is the most likely candidate to lead the line.
As for Red Bull Salzburg, they are set to be without Gaoussou Diakite (hip), Fernando, Petar Ratkov (both thigh), Takumu Kawamura (knee) and Moussa Yeo (ankle) due to injury.
Goalkeeper Alexander Schlager is suspended after being sent off in the defeat to Dinamo Zagreb on matchday three, so Janis Blaswich is poised to start between the sticks, protected by centre-back duo Kamil Piatkowski and Samson Baidoo.
Liverpool loanees Stefan Bajcetic and Bobby Clark are both in contention to start in midfield, while Karim Konate, who has scored a team-high six goals this term, is set to be joined in attack by Oscar Gloukh and Adam Daghim.
Feyenoord possible starting lineup:
Wellenreuther; Read, Beelen, Hancko, Bueno; Zerrouki, Hwang, Timber; Osman, Carranza, Paixao
Red Bull Salzburg possible starting lineup:
Blaswich; Dedic, Piatkowski, Baidoo, Terzic; Bidstrup, Diambou, Clark; Daghim, Konate, Gloukh
We say: Feyenoord 3-1 Red Bull Salzburg
Salzburg can ill-afford to drop too many more points if they wish to keep their slim hopes of reaching the knockout rounds alive. However, keeping it tight at the back has been a real struggle and they may find it difficult to come out on top against a Feyenoord outfit that should still have enough quality in the final third to outscore their opponents, despite the absences of Gimenez and Milambo.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
