Legia Warsaw play host to Molde in the second leg of their Europa Conference League playoff tie needing to overturn a deficit to progress.

The Polish side found themselves three goals down in Norway last week before salvaging a 3-2 aggregate deficit ahead of their reverse fixture.

Match preview

Legia Warsaw's RafaL Augustyniak celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates Svein Ove on February 15, 2024 © Reuters

For an hour of the first leg, it appeared that Legia Warsaw's supporter-ban for away fixtures would prove pivotal as they quickly went 3-0 down.

However, to their credit, Legia somehow managed to get back to being just 3-2 down ahead of welcoming their opponents to a ground where they impressed during the group stages.

Aston Villa, Zrinjski Mostar and AZ Alkmaar all succumbed to defeat at Stadion Wojska Polskiego, and Legia have not lost at this ground since the end of October.

Nevertheless, Kosta Runjaic's side failed to get the better of Puszcza Niepolomice in their last domestic outing, leaving them five points adrift of top spot.

Sitting in fifth place, Legia desperately need to improve to qualify for Europe next season, yet their priority will be on remaining in this competition, one they remain as dark horses to win even with their supporters unable to attend any away fixtures if they go deep in the tournament.

Meanwhile, Molde will have a mixed opinion over their exploits in the first leg after conceding a strong lead during the closing third of the contest.

On the back of finishing in fifth in the 2023 Eliteserien, Erling Moe would have initially been satisfied with any winning scoreline, but momentum has been lost ahead of the trip to Poland.

Molde had mixed success in away games during the Europa League group stages, beating Swedish side Hacken but suffering defeats to Qarabag FK and Bayer Leverkusen respectively.

They have also played six European fixtures in succession where they have both scored and conceded, it yet to be determined whether extending such a streak would be beneficial or detrimental in this game.

Legia Warsaw Europa Conference League form:

Legia Warsaw form (all competitions):

Molde Europa Conference League form:

Molde form (all competitions):

Team News

Molde coach Erling Moe before the match on December 14, 2023 © Reuters

With the changes made by Runjaic for the game at the weekend not paying off, the Legia XI may look similar to the one that started the first leg.

Maciej Rosolek scored as a substitute versus Puszcza Niepolomice and should feature in the final third, but Bartosz Kapustka and Blaz Kramar are both pushing for starts in midfield and attack.

Barring any fitness issues, Moe may be prepared to go with the team that stated so brightly in the initial fixture.

Molde have since had a week to recover from a first competitive game, aside from a friendly tournament, since last year, with Norway international Veton Berisha expected to stay among the replacements.

Although Magnus Wolff Eikrem could potentially drop into a deeper position to accommodate Berisha, that is unlikely given the current state of the tie.

Legia Warsaw possible starting lineup:
Tobiasz; Ribeiro, Jedrzejczyk, Kapuadi; Wszolek, Elitim, Kapustka, Kun; Josue, Rosolek; Kramar

Molde possible starting lineup:
Petersen; Haugen, Hagelskjaer, Haugan; Linnes, Kaasa, Daehli, Eriksen, Lovik; Eikrem, Gulbrandsen

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We say: Legia Warsaw 3-1 Molde (Legia Warsaw to win 5-4 on aggregate)

Having initially breached the Legia defence so easily last week, Molde will fancy their chances in this contest. Nevertheless, backed by their home support, Legia may have enough in their ranks to get over the line, potentially after extra time.

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