At Old Trafford, Twente put up a commendable fight against Manchester United (1:1), and this coming Thursday, they face another formidable opponent in Fenerbahçe. The Turkish side has returned to winning ways following their 3:1 derby defeat to Galatasaray and is now heading to the Netherlands in search of points.
Against Manchester United, Twente recorded 1.49 xGA compared to their own 0.72 expected goals. Sam Lammers' accurate strike in the middle of the second half was essentially fortuitous, the team managed only three shots on target over the entirety of 90 minutes. Without Michal Sadílek and Younes Taha, absent due to injuries, Twente still lack the full complement of players and must rely heavily on key starters.
Fans of Fenerbahçe, of course, anticipated a stronger start following José Mourinho's arrival, but their victory over Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise (2:1) offers hope for a better showing in the Europa League. At home against Union Saint-Gilloise, the Istanbul team secured their win on class alone: they only needed 1.13 xG and three shots on target to get the job done. Fenerbahçe's coaching staff have enough options to rotate players across two tournaments, as Fred Rodrigues demonstrated by coming off the bench to assist in the 2:0 victory over Antalyaspor on Sunday.
In the UEFA Europa Conference League qualifiers 13 months ago, Fenerbahçe dismantled Twente (6:1 on aggregate). In the Netherlands, the Turkish side is poised to avoid defeat once again—their star-studded lineup, along with their head coach, are all geared up for results.
