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Qarabag will host Molde at the Azersun Arena on Thursday in the opening round of the 2023-24 UEFA Europa League campaign.
The home side have had mixed results in the Azerbaijan top-flight this season and will be looking to put in a more assured showing on the continental stage this week. They beat Sabah FK 2-0 in their last game via second-half goals from Juninho Vieira and Hamidou Keyta.
Qarabag opened their Europa League campaign last season with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Freiburg and will be hoping for better luck this time around.
Molde, meanwhile, are enjoying a strong run of form in the Eliteserien at the moment and will be looking to carry that momentum into the Europa League on Thursday. They beat Odds BK 4-1 in their last game with three different players getting on the scoresheet including substitutes Fredrik Gulbrandsen and Magnus Eikrem.
The visitors will make their return to the Europa League this week for the first time since the 2020-21 campaign and hope they can kick things off on a positive note.
Qarabag vs Molde Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- Thursday's game will mark just the second meeting between Qarabag and Molde.
- The two sides faced off for the first-ever time in an UEFA Champions League qualifying clash back in 2020 which Molde won on penalties after a goalless 120 minutes.
- The home side have three meetings against Norwegian opposition in European competitions. They have won one of those games, drawn once and lost the other.
- The visitors are without a clean sheet in their last four games across all competitions.
- Four of Molde's five league defeats this season have come away from home.
Qarabag vs Molde Prediction
Qarabag's latest result ended a three-game winless run and they will be looking to build on that this week. They are undefeated in their last six home matches and will be looking to extend that streak this week.
Molde are on a run of back-to-back victories after winning just one of their six games prior. They have, however, struggled for results on the road of late and could see defeat here.
Prediction: Qarabag 2-1 Molde
Qarabag vs Molde Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Qarabag to win
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Four of the visitors' last five matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES (Both sides have found the back of the net in five of the hosts' last seven matches)
