On August 14th at 01:00, Twente will face Salzburg in the second leg of the Champions League third qualifying round.
In the first leg, Salzburg took a crucial lead after defeating Twente 2-1 at home with a brace from Jalgard. Twente, however, managed to find a lifeline in the 90+4th minute when Vlap scored a crucial goal, reducing the deficit to just one goal and reigniting their hopes.
Twente finished third in the Eredivisie last season, earning a spot in the Champions League. They have just started their new season, beginning with a 2-1 victory away to Nijmegen in the first round of the Eredivisie. They’re looking to bounce back from their loss in Austria just four days ago and strive to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 2009. However, even if they manage to defeat Salzburg, they’ll face a tough challenge in the play-off round against either Rangers or Dynamo Kyiv.
Salzburg has been a regular in the Champions League for the past decade, but they fell short in the group stages last year, finishing bottom of their group alongside Inter Milan, Real Sociedad, and Benfica. Under a new coach, Salzburg feels the need to prove themselves, especially after failing to win the domestic league title in the 2023/24 season after a decade of dominance. With the arrival of former Liverpool assistant coach Matthias Jaissle as their new manager, Salzburg has gone unbeaten in the pre-season, followed by four consecutive victories in the Austrian Cup, Austrian Bundesliga, and Champions League qualifiers.
As per their usual pattern, Salzburg said goodbye to several key players this summer. Luka Sucic moved to Real Sociedad, while Strahinja Pavlović joined AC Milan. In addition, Ivorian international Karim Konaté, who scored 20 league goals last season, recently sustained a knee injury and could be sidelined until September. He joins Fernando, Takumi Minamino, and Alexander Schlager on the sidelines.
For Twente, while Van Wolfswinkel was rested last weekend, their captain is expected to return to the starting lineup for this match. Twente’s other starting striker is expected to be their top scorer from last season, Vaclav Cerny. Although Hilgers is back from a domestic ban and should start in the backline, Czech midfielder Michal Sadilek remains sidelined due to injury.
These two teams have faced each other three times across all competitions, the first meeting taking place in the 1998/99 Toto Cup. Salzburg has remained undefeated in those three encounters (two wins and one draw) and has scored at least two goals in all three games. On the other hand, Salzburg has gone undefeated in their last 13 Champions League qualifying matches, winning their last five consecutively.
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