In the final round of Europa League group-stage fixtures this term, Qarabag FK will aim to keep hold of second spot and earn a playoff place on Thursday, when they welcome Hacken to Azerbaijan.
The hosts only trail Molde on head-to-head points and need to match or better the Norwegian side's result on the final day to continue in the competition, while their visitors are out of contention but will aim to bow out with their first points of the campaign.
Match preview
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Qarabag FK return to Azerbaijan for their final Europa League group game with clear permutations if they are to progress in this year's competition, having amassed seven points from their first five outings.
They enjoyed a fast start, beating Molde 1-0 in their curtain-raiser thanks to Leandro Andrade's goal and making it back-to-back three-point hauls in a trip to Hacken, as Juninho netted the only goal of the game against Thursday's opponents 20 minutes from time.
A pair of tricky ties against group leaders Bayer Leverkusen then followed, and the Horsemen did not manage to stake a stronger claim for a top-two spot, falling to 5-1 and 1-0 defeats as only Victor Boniface's injury-time winner denied them a share of the spoils on home turf ahead of a crucial meeting with Molde last time out, as the sides headed into the game on equal points.
Gurban Gurbanov's side led ahead of that meeting on head-to-head points, but they looked set to be leapfrogged as they trailed 2-1 heading into injury time, with Kristian Eriksen putting their hosts ahead with a late brace, only for the Azerbaijani outfit to snatch a share of the spoils deep into injury time thanks to Bahlul Mustafazada's leveller.
Such a result kept Qarabag ahead of their second-place rivals on head-to-head points, meaning they now head into the final game with the clear objective of matching or bettering Molde's result against Bayer Leverkusen in order to seal second spot and a resultant Europa League playoff place, or else a drop into the Europa Conference League awaits.
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They meet a Hacken side who will hope to end their continental campaign on a positive note following a tough group stage in Europe's secondary competition.
The Swedish outfit began the season in Champions League qualifying, and after falling just short against KI Klaksvik, they booked their place in the Europa League group stage with aggregate triumphs over Zalgiris and Aberdeen.
Per-Mathias Hogmo's side have been unable to put a point on the board in their five attempts thus far, though, bowing out of European competition entirely this term as a result, having scored twice while conceding 15 goals as they began with a 4-0 defeat away at Bayer Leverkusen and a 1-0 home loss in the previous meeting between these two sides.
A pair of meetings with Molde then produced 3-1 and 5-1 defeats, as Srdan Hrstic scored their only goal at home and Momodou Sonko netted a consolation in Norway, before the Wasps most recently hosted Bayer Leverkusen and feel to a 2-0 loss after a valiant effort, as Victor Boniface and Patrik Schick netted the goals for the Bundesliga giants.
Having not been in competitive action since that last outing, after finishing third in the Swedish Allsvenskan in November, Hacken will now aim to end on a high in the Europa League with a victory in Azerbaijan before Hogmo departs for Urawa Red Diamonds at the end of the year.
Team News
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Qarabag may field the same starting XI from their draw away at Molde in their last group game, and Juninho is bound to again lead the line, having netted a team-high tally of 15 goals so far this term, including two in the Europa League group stage.
Leandro Andrade and Yassine Benzia have chipped in with nine and seven goals respectively across all competitions this campaign, and they should again play key roles in a supporting trio behind Juninho in their 4-2-3-1 shape, with Abdellah Zoubir likely completing the attacking unit.
Elsewhere, Marko Jankovic and Patrick Andrade could again line up in the engine room, while Bahlul Mustafazada and Kevin Medina should continue their centre-back partnership.
Hacken may opt to deploy the same starting XI from their defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in their last competitive game, although Ali Youssef and Momodou Sonko are both fighting to come into the attack from the start after featuring off the bench in that 2-0 loss.
Since the departures of top scorers Benie Traore and Ibrahim Sadiq to Sheffield United and AZ Alkmaar respectively in the summer transfer window, plenty of attacking responsibility has fallen on new man Srdjan Hrstic, who has netted two goals in his first 10 games for the club.
Edward Chilufya should keep his place on the wing, having managed five goals of his own this term, while Pontus Dahbo is also hoping to come in from the outset in midfield after Mikkel Rygaard, Samuel Gustafson and Amane Romeo were preferred last time out.
Qarabag FK possible starting lineup:
Lunyov; Vesovic, Mustafazada, Medina, Cafarguliyev; Jankovic, P Andrade; L Andrade, Benzia, Zoubir; Juninho
Hacken possible starting lineup:
Abrahamsson; Abdulrazak, Ousou, Hovland, Totland; Rygaard, Gustafson, Dahbo; Chilufya, Hrstic, Sonko
We say: Qarabag FK 3-0 Hacken
Qarabag still have a need for a positive result on Thursday if they are to keep hold of second spot in their group, while Hacken have struggled to remain competitive in this year's Europa League, and we can only see them bowing out without a point following a defeat in Azerbaijan, with the hosts likely to outclass the Swedish outfit all over the pitch.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Sam Varley
