Lokomotiv – Fenerbahce

Lokomotiv Moscow will host Fenerbahce in an early Europa League kickoff on Thursday, with the Turkish side riding a 2-0 advantage from the first leg.

Lokomotiv had an excellent first part of the season, dominating the Russian Premier League and bossing an Europa League group with Sporting and Besiktas. However, something happened with them late in October and they went on to win just 2 of the last 12 games in 2015. The early season success still allowed them to stay within reach of the domestic title and win the Europa League group, but Lokomotiv was not the same team late last year and it seems that they are still not the same team this year. They were utterly dominated in Turkey (their only match in 2016) and Fenerbahce could have even won by a larger score.

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Fenerbahce is on the back of a 0-0 road draw at Bursaspor, their 4th consecutive match without defeat. The visitors are involved in a tight battle with Besiktas for the league title, but even so Fener is putting a lot of emphasis on the Europa League. They fielded their best lineup in the first leg and are expected to do the same today, even if they are ridding a pretty comfortable advantage. Fenerbahce will surely draw confidence from the dominant display they put on against Lokomotiv last week and will feel that a similar performance will be more than enough for a comfortable qualification.

Team news: Expect both sides to line up in a similar fashion to how they did the first leg, as there are no new important injuries or suspensions for either side according to reports.

I believe Fenerbahce will claim at least a draw in this game, even though they can still qualify with a loss. The visitors are without question the better team right now, in better form and unlike Lokomotiv, they have plenty of matches under their belt – always an important factor.

I doubt the hosts managed to fix any of their problems in such short time and without playing competitive matches. They will need to score at least twice here, so at some point they will leave open spaces that Fenerbahce is more than capable to exploit. This fact suggests that the visitors might have a good chance to not only draw, but win the game. Playing in Russia is obviously not easy, but even so Fener should qualify without too much stress. My tip is Fenerbahce +0 asian handicap. Prediction: Lokomotiv Moscow – Fenerbahce 1-2.

Pick: Fenerbahce (+0 Asian Handicap)
Odds: 1.95 @ 1xBet
Stake: 6
Possible profit: 5.70
Event date: 25 February