Sparta Prague vs Partizan – Sparta Prague will host Partizan in the opening leg of their Europa Conference League knockout round playoff this evening at the Generali Ceska Pojistovna Arena.
The hosts qualified for the playoffs by placing third in Group A of the Europa League, while the visitors finished second behind Gent in the Conference League group stages.
Sparta Prague appeared to be in a very promising position two and a half games into their Europa League season, having won an important game with Rangers 1-0 after an initial draw with Brondby, and being 2-1 up at home to Lyon after 45 minutes.
However, a 2-1 advantage would turn into a 4-3 loss, and a 2-0 loss at Rangers followed by another defeat to Les Gones meant qualifying was already unachievable after five games due to the Scottish side’s superior goal differential in head-to-head encounters.
Sparta is currently in third place in the Czech First League, behind local rivals Slavia Prague and Viktoria Plzen, while Partizan leads the Serbian SuperLiga by five points.
They are still unbeaten after 22 games, have won six straight league games, and have 13 victories in their previous 14 games, and appear to be set for the crown.
Local rivals Red Star Belgrade was undefeated and raced to the title last season, but they are now five points behind Partizan and unlikely to catch them this year.
Sparta Prague vs Partizan – Team News:
Vrba put David Hancko in the defensive four in a 4-5-1 formation for their penultimate league game against Plzen. With Jakub Pesek and Lukas Haraslin on the flanks and Martin Minchev in the attack’s center, David Pavelka and Adam Hlozek returned to the midfield.
After a remarkable comeback from a two-goal deficit in that game, the starting XI will most likely appear similar. Aleksandar Stanojevic will likewise keep to a winning formula, with Cape Verde’s Gomes Ricardo leading the line in his preferred 3-4-2-1 shape.
Sparta Prague possible starting lineup:
Holec; Wiesner, Panak, Celustka, Hancko; Pesek, Pavelka, Sacek, Hlozek, Haraslin; Mincev
Partizan possible starting lineup:
Popovic; Slobodan, Igor, Sinisa; Milos, Nemanja, Bibras, Danilo; Sasa, Queensy; Ricardo
Sparta Prague vs Partizan – Head-to-Head:
Our Prediction: Under 3.5 Goals
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