Form and Line-up Elbasani
Elbasani came close to a domestic double in Albania, losing in the national cup semi-finals to Egnatia (3:2 on aggregate), the team they battled until the end for the league title. The home side did not give up late on after a poor spell of four defeats, but they still finished without the title. In their only friendly before the start of Conference League qualifying, the team beat Montenegrin side Petrovac (2:1), with the whole squad getting as much playing time as possible.
Key numbers for Elbasani:
The team coached by Gvozdenovic have played only one friendly in the new season, with the match against Petrovac their only game in five weeks since the end of the previous campaign.
Elbasani have undergone significant squad changes in the off-season, with 10 departures and 13 new arrivals.
Last season, Elbasani ended the campaign poorly, suffering four defeats in the final six rounds.
Probable Elbasani line-up
Igor Aleksovski - Klevis Kasa, Bruno Lulaj, Joao Epito, Bledar Lila - Arsen Kasa, Abbas Ibrahim - Mario Barjamaj, Bernard Karrica, Ibrahima Diallo - Rubin Hebaj
Form and Line-up BATE Borisov
BATE Borisov have clearly dropped off before the start of the Conference League qualifying stage. Almost two months after winning the Belarusian Cup final against Dinamo Minsk (2:1 after penalties), the away side still have not claimed a single win in the Belarusian Premier League. BATE Borisov have slipped to the penultimate place, and the gap to the safe 13th spot is two points. Their attacking problems are clear: only two players in the team coached by Rogozhkin have scored more than one goal in the league, defender Sakuta and squad midfielder Rusakov.
Key numbers for BATE Borisov:
BATE Borisov remain the only team in the Belarusian Premier League who have not passed the 10-goal mark (9).
In the Belarusian league, BATE Borisov have had nine matches finish with Under 2.5 goals, a figure exceeded only by Gomel and Vitebsk (both 10).
The average age of the BATE Borisov squad is under 23 (22.9).
Probable BATE Borisov line-up
Danila Sokol - Ayk Musakhanyan, Artem Rakhmanov, Maksim Sakuta - Nikita Neskromny, Kirill Kaplenko, Victorien Angban, Egor Kress - Yao Jean Charles, Maksim Mardas, Erik Puerto
Who Will Referee the Match
Ion Orlic (Moldova)
Matches - 5 (international matches, 2024/25-2025/26);
Average fouls per match - 28;
Average yellow cards per match (including second yellows) - 3;
Matches with red cards - 1 out of 5;
Matches with penalties - 1 out of 5.
