Sturm Graz vs Rangers Prediction and Betting Tips

Sturm Graz will face Rangers at the Merkur Arena on Thursday in the second round of the 2025-26 UEFA Europa League league phase. The home side have enjoyed a fine start to their Austrian Bundesliga campaign, most recently beating Hartberg 1-0, but will break from their title defense this week as they make their return to the European stage.

They headed to Denmark for their Europa League opener last week, where they faced Midtjylland and lost 2-0, creating a couple of chances to get on the scoresheet themselves but ultimately failing to convert.

Rangers, meanwhile, have endured a quite poor start to life under new boss Russell Martin, with the Englishman winning just five of his 15 games in charge so far. Like their midweek opponents, the Gers opened their continental campaign with a defeat, losing 1-0 to Genk. A red card to Mohammed Diomande in the first half made an already tricky encounter even more difficult.

The visitors, however, picked up their first league win of the campaign at the weekend as they beat Livingston 2-1 and they will hope to build on that on Thursday.

Sturm Graz vs Rangers Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

Thursday's game will mark the third competitive meeting between Sturm Graz and Rangers, with both sides winning a game apiece in their previous matchups.
The two teams last faced off in the 2000-01 UEFA Champions League campaign, with the hosts winning the group-stage clash 2-0.
The hosts have had four meetings against Scottish opposition in European competitions. They have won two of those games and lost the other two.
The visitors have had seven competitive meetings against Austrian opponents. They have won five of those games and lost the other two.

Sturm Graz vs Rangers Prediction

Die Schwoazn have won three of their last four games and five of their last seven. They are slight favorites heading into the midweek clash, but will need to be at their very best to come away with maximum points.

The Gers have won two of their last three games after going winless in their previous five. They have won just one away game all season and could lose this one.

Prediction: Sturm Graz 1-0 Rangers

Sturm Graz vs Rangers Betting Tips

Tip 1 - Result: Sturm Graz to win

Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Under 2.5 goals (Four of the visitors' last five matches have produced fewer than 2.5 goals)

Tip 3 - Both teams to score: No (Both sides have found the back of the net in just one of the hosts' last eight matches)

About the author

Jedidiah is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda, who has been covering match previews for more than 3 years. Currently pursuing an engineering degree from the University of Ibadan, he conducts thorough research and ensures to be up-to-date with football news across the globe to create the most accurate previews.

A Manchester United fan, Jedidiah fell in love with football and the Red Devils since their UEFA Champions League triumph over Chelsea in 2008. He is a big fan of Robert Lewandowski and his historic performances from 2020, but feels that only Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are capable of replicating the Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry. His all-time favorite manager is Carlo Ancelotti due to the Italian's remarkable composure in difficult moments of a contest. Spain's 1-0 win over Netherlands in the final of the 2010 FIFA World Cup is etched in his memory forever.

A true student of the game, Jedidiah relishes identifying hidden gems from lower-tiered leagues such as the EFL Championship and the Eredivisie. When not creating previews, he likes playing football and reading books.

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