Our prediction for this Europa League match:
All eyes will be on Stockhorn Arena when Lugano and Besiktas square off against each other in the Europa League final qualifying round, first leg. Lugano failed to impress in the double-header with fallen Serbia giants Partizan, but thanks to Mohamed Belhadj’s goal in the extra-time they somehow made it to the playoffs. Defender Albian Hajdari serves a one-game ban, while there are no fresh injury worries in the home team.
Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s team, on the other hand, are eyeing their fourth consecutive win in all competitions. As Lugano struggled at the back in the 2-2 draw with Partizan, we predict that the Turks are going to emerge triumphant in the first leg. A man to keep an eye on in the away team will be experienced striker Ciro Immobile, who scored a brace in a come-from-behind win over Antalyaspor at the weekend. Both Emrecan Terzi and Arda Kilic continue to miss out with injuries, speaking of the visiting team.
Highlighted Team (Besiktas):
![Besiktas](https://footballpredictions.com/wp-content/plugins/fp-highlights/imageid/team/1866.png)
Besiktas football club is one of the most successful teams in Turkey. Since its foundation in 1903, Besiktas have never been relegated to a lower rank of Turkish football. Black Eagles as they are known in Turkey play their matches at the Vodafone Arena in Istanbul which is an almost 42,000 all-seater capacity venue.
Considered one of the top three football clubs in the country, Besiktas are the 14-time Super Lig champions who are entering the Champions League group stage in the 2016-17 season looking to make their presence known at the European scene. Besiktas have played in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League four times already, and are yet to progress through to the knockout sgateg in the competition that was established in today’s format in 1992.
Their most outstanding European achievements of the Turkish side are the European Cup and UEFA Cup quarter-finals in 1987 and 2003, respectively. During their rich history the Black Eagles have also won 9 Turkish Cups and 8 national Super Cup titles.