Has Fenerbahce already digested the defeat against Kiev?
Once again no Champions League for the canaries from Istanbul. Fenerbahce – as in the 14 years before – failed again in the qualification for the Champions League and slipped into the Europa League qualification after the second round exit against Dynamo Kiev. There, the yellow-navy-blue team from Istanbul will now continue their international adventure against 1. FC Slovacko.
Thursday’s opponent of the Canaries will start in the third qualifying round for the Europa League in the international competition. 1. FC Slovacko won the right to enter the EL qualifiers by winning the 2021/22 Czech Cup competition and will now be represented internationally for only the third time in the club’s history. Therefore, the odds on an away win in the Fenerbahce vs. Slovacko match are very high at approx. 8.50.
Last week, the Eastern European representative started the new competitive season with a draw at 1. FC Brno. Despite trailing at half-time, 1. FC Slovacko fought their way back into the match in an energy-sapping away game and earned a well-deserved point with a 2-2 draw.
Fenerbahce, on the other hand, have already been able to gain international match practice and showed good approaches in the two matches against Dynamo Kiev. If the Canaries continue to build on this and also hone their attacking game, Fenerbahce should not have too much trouble at home against 1. FC Slovacko.
Fenerbahce – Statistics & current form
Fenerbahce are out for damage limitation and are now aiming to make it to the Europa League group stage after missing out on qualification for the top flight. The Canaries caught a feasible hurdle with 1. FC Slovacko in the third round of qualification. If they are successful, the yellow and navy blue team will meet Austria Wien in the play-offs.
Fenerbahce will play the first leg against Slovacko at the Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium and are favourites as expected. The bookmakers are currently only offering odds of 1.36 on Fenerbahce vs. Slovacko for tip 1. The Canaries have only lost one home match in the entire history of the club in the context of an EL qualifier.
If that record continues this time, Fenerbahce can improve their record against Czech clubs. So far, the Canaries have a record of just 4-1-7 in 12 matches against teams from the Czech Republic. The last time Fenerbahce faced a Czech side, they suffered two defeats to Slavia Prague last season, which saw them bow out of the Conference League.
Is Jorge Jesus finding the recipe for success at Fenerbahce?
It is still difficult to assess how strong Fenerbahce are this season. If it is up to the new arrivals in the summer and the new head coach, the Yellow Navy Blues not only have the potential to win the league championship, but also to make a splash internationally.
Jorge Jesus, the new head coach of the Yellow Navy, has already won 13 titles as head coach with various teams. Although the Portuguese has had enough time to settle in, the signature of Jorge Jesus is not yet recognisable in Fenerbahce’s play. The Canaries still have room for improvement, especially in their offensive play.
It therefore remains to be seen with which starting eleven Jesus will tackle the matches on the international stage this time. Changes – especially in the attacking department – cannot be ruled out. In any case, there were numerous surprises in the nomination for the EL squad. Among others, ex-Wolfsburg players Tisserand, Caulker, Kahveci, Yandas, Samatta and Cukur were not considered.
On top of that, Fenerbahce is already struggling with some injury worries. Seven players are on the injured list in total, including regular keeper Bayindir.
Predicted Fenerbahce line-up:
Cetin – Novak, Szalai, Peres, Osayi-Samuel – Arao, Crespo – Rossi, Lincoln, Mor – Berisha
Last matches played by Fenerbahce:
Champions League Qualifier
27/07/2022 – Fenerbahçe 1 – 2 Dynamo Kiev
21/07/2022 – Dynamo Kiev 0 – 0 Fenerbahçe
Friendly club matches
11/07/2022 – Fenerbahçe 2 – 0 Hull
05/07/2022 – Fenerbahçe 3 – 0 Fehervar FC
02/07/2022 – Fenerbahçe 1 – 0 Partizan Belgrade
Slovacko – Statistics & current form
For 1. FC Slovacko the international adventure starts this week with the qualifiers against Fenerbahce. The Eastern Europeans have been handed a tough draw in the form of the heavyweight from Istanbul and will start as underdogs. So far, 1st FC Slovacko have never qualified for the group stage of a UEFA European Cup.
Last season, the Eastern Europeans were defeated by Lokomotiv Plovdiv in the Conference League qualifiers. They lost narrowly away from home, but 1 FC Slovacko prevailed in the second leg in front of their home crowd. However, head coach Martin Svedik’s team lost in a penalty shoot-out.
Internationally, 1. FC Slovacko have a record of 0-2-2 in a total of four away matches since 2002. In that period, 1. FC Slovacko have not scored in any of the four matches.
Does Slovacko defy the Turkish representative?
Nevertheless, 1st FC Slovacko will approach the match in Istanbul with a broad chest. Last year’s cup winners from the Czech Republic left a positive impression in their summer preparations and remained unbeaten in all eight test matches. Among other things, they drew against Trabzonspor, the reigning champions from Turkey.
Slovacko even scored two goals in that match. The offensive is the Eastern Europeans’ showpiece anyway and was one of the success factors of the last season. In the Fortuna Liga 2021/22, 1st FC Slovacko scored a total of 59 goals in 35 match days – an average of 1.69 goals per league match. With 17 goals and two assists, Jurecka in particular played a major role in Slovacko’s success.
In the summer, however, the top scorer of the Czech Cup winners was sold to Slavia Prague. His role in the top line was surprisingly taken over by left-back Kalabiska. It is quite possible that the veteran will also start as a striker against Fenerbahce.
Predicted line-up of Slovacko:
Nguyen – Doski, Hofmann, Kadlec, Reinberk – Havlik, Danicek – Holzer, Travnik, Petrzela – Kalabiska
Last matches played by Slovacko:
1st league
30/07/2022 – Brno 2 – 2 Slovacko
Friendly club matches
16/07/2022 – Trabzonspor 2 – 2 Slovacko
Cup
18/05/2022 – Slovacko 3 – 1 Sp. Prague
1st League Championship Group
15/05/2022 – Slovacko 3 – 0 FC Hradec Králové
11/05/2022 – Sp. Prague 1 – 2 Slovacko
Fenerbahce – Slovacko Direct comparison / H2H-balance
Fenerbahce and Slovacko meet for the first time ever
Fenerbahce – Slovacko Tip
The Canaries from Istanbul have no further room for setbacks on the international stage after missing out on qualification for the Champions League. If club president Ali Koc has his way, the focus this season will be on the championship battle in the league. Matches on the international stage, on the other hand, are of secondary importance to the club boss.
Head coach Jorge Jesus will therefore remain on the sidelines even if the team misses out on qualification for a UEFA European Cup. Fenerbahce will start the qualifying match against Slovacko as comparatively clear favourites. Surprisingly so, as the Canaries are currently struggling with a number of personnel problems. Therefore, despite interesting betting odds, Fenerbahce vs. Slovacko predictions are too tricky for us.
Numerous top performers from last season were not called up to the EL squad. On top of that, Jesus also has to do without seven players in the squad due to injury. This includes regular keeper Altay Bayindir, who is expected to be replaced by 19-year-old Ertugrul Cetin for the match against 1. FC Slovacko.
We therefore do not rule out a match of equals and tend to expect a high-scoring encounter. Our betting odds for Fenerbahce vs. Slovacko are 1.88 on over 2.5 goals in the match
