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FC Koper will host FC Vaduz at the Bonifika Stadium in Koper, Slovenia, on Thursday in the first leg of the UEFA Europa Conference League second qualifying round.
The Canaries, who finished second in the Slovenian PrvaLiga last season, are looking to reach their first major European tournament since the 2003 Intetoto Cup.
This is also their first appearance in the qualifying stage of any European club competition since the 2015-16 season. Koper lost in the second qualifying round of the Europa League.
Standing in the way of their European return is Liechtenstein's Vaduz, who've lost in the qualifying round of European competitions in the last nine years, and in 23 of the last 24 years.
Last year, the Furstenverein lost at this stage of the Conference League to Hungarian outfit Ujpest, who beat Vaduz 5-2 on aggregate to deny them a place in the competition's inaugural edition.
Alessandro Mangiarratti's side finished fourth in the 2021-22 Swiss Challenge League, behind Winterthur, Schaffhausen and Aarau, but won the Liechtenstein Cup.
This helped them seal a place in the qualifiers of the Europa Conference League once more. Vaduz will look to make amends for their early loss last year and progress to at least the next qualifying round this time.
Koper vs Vaduz Head-To-Head and Key Numbers
- This will be the first official meeting between Koper and Vaduz
- Koper began their 2022-23 league campaign on Friday, winning their season opener 2-1.
- Vaduz also started their new Swiss top flight campaign on the same day, playing out a 1-1 draw against Aarau.
- Koper's last appearance in Europe was 19 years ago in the Intertoto Cup, when they reached the semifinals.
- Vaduz have lost their last five games in the qualifiers.
Koper vs Vaduz Prediction
Vaduz have more experience in European qualification, as the Liechtenstein side have played in the qualifiers of European competition in the last nine years.
Koper, meanwhile, have started their league campaign on a better note but needed an 81st-minute winner to seal all three points. Both teams could give the other a tough fight, but the spoils could be shared in this one.
Prediction: Koper 1-1 Vaduz.
$1,000 Risk-Free Bet at FanDuel SB
Koper vs Vaduz Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Draw.
Tip 2 - Goals over/under 2.5: under 2.5.
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: Yes.
