The Europa League qualifying playoffs get underway on Thursday night, with Slovenian side NK Olimpija Ljubljana hosting Azerbaijani outfit Qarabag FK at the Stozice Stadium. The hosts kicked off their European campaign in the first qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League last month. After clinching their first top-flight title since 2017-18, Ljubljana found themselves in Champions League qualifying at the start of the new campaign, dispatching Valmiera and Ludogorets Razgrad in the early rounds. They were eliminated from the third round by Galatasaray, suffering a 4-0 defeat on aggregate, and will now try their luck in the Europa League. The visitors also began their European campaign in the Champions League qualifiers. Qarabag started the season in Champions League qualifying but failed to make it past the second round, crushing Lincoln Red Imps 6-1 on aggregate before suffering a 4-3 aggregate defeat against Polish club Rakow Czestochowa. They booked a place in the Europa League playoffs with a 4-2 win over HJK in the third qualifying round. I am expecting a win or a draw for the away team for the following reasons:

Firstly. Qarabag made it four wins in a row in all competitions on Sunday with a 2-1 victory over Araz Nacxivan in the Azerbaijan Premier League, and scored more than two goals apiece in each of these wins. The Horsemen have now won two of their three league matches this season, setting themselves up for yet another title charge, having won nine of the previous 10 top-flight titles in Azerbaijan. They have met with Ljubljana twice in the past, with the two meetings coming in the first qualifying round of the Champions League 2018-19 campaign. They have an unbeaten record in these meetings with an away win and a draw.

Secondly. The Slovenian champions failed to make it past Galatasaray in the third qualifying round, suffering a 4-0 aggregate defeat at the hands of the Turkish giants. After the loss the went to record a 5-4 win in the Prva Liga on last week Saturday to bounce back from the disappointment. Despite that loss, new manager Joao Henriques has enjoyed a promising start to life at Olimpija, overseeing three victories in four league games, while the Dragons have already scored 13 goals on home soil this term.

Given that the first leg will likely be a tense and cagey encounter, I expect Olimpija Ljubljana and Qarabag to play out a low-scoring stalemate, while Qarabag have the quality over Ljubljana to also be able to get a win. It is on these notes that I am expecting a win or a draw for the away side tonight.

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欧联杯预选赛季后赛将于周四晚上开始，斯洛文尼亚的卢布尔雅那奥林匹克队将在斯托兹策体育场迎战阿塞拜疆的卡拉巴赫队。东道主在上个月的欧洲冠军联赛预选赛第一轮拉开了他们欧洲之旅的序幕。在获得2017-18赛季以来的首个顶级联赛冠军后，卢布尔雅那在新赛季开始时发现自己进入了欧冠预选赛，在前几轮淘汰了瓦尔米拉和拉兹格勒。他们在第三轮被加拉塔萨雷淘汰，总比分0 - 4惨败，现在将在欧联杯上碰碰运气。客队在欧冠预选赛中也开始了他们的欧洲之旅。卡拉巴格在本赛季的欧冠预选赛中首发，但未能出线，先是以总比分6-1大胜林肯红精灵队，然后又以总比分4-3不敌波兰俱乐部拉科夫切斯托霍瓦队。他们在第三轮资格赛中以4-2战胜hkk，获得了欧联杯季后赛的席位。我预计客场球队会赢或平局，原因如下:

首先。在周日的阿塞拜疆超级联赛中，卡拉巴格以2-1战胜阿拉兹·纳克西万，取得了各项赛事的四连胜，并且在每一场比赛中都打进了两个以上的进球。骑士在本赛季的三场联赛中已经赢了两场，他们已经在阿塞拜疆赢得了之前10个顶级联赛冠军中的9个，为他们的另一个冠军头衔奠定了基础。他们过去曾两次与卢布尔雅那会面，两次会面都是在2018-19赛季欧冠资格赛的第一轮。他们在这些比赛中保持着一胜一平的不败记录。

其次。斯洛文尼亚冠军在预选赛第三轮未能出线，总比分0 - 4不敌土耳其豪门加拉塔萨雷。在输球后，他们在上周六的甲级联赛中以5-4获胜，从失望中恢复过来。尽管输掉了这场比赛，新教练亨利克斯在奥林匹亚的生活有了一个充满希望的开始，他在四场联赛中取得了三场胜利，而龙之队本赛季已经在主场打入了13球。

考虑到第一回合可能会是一场紧张而谨慎的比赛，我预计卢布尔雅那奥林匹亚和卡拉巴格会踢出一个低比分的僵局，而卡拉巴格也有能力战胜卢布尔雅那。正是基于这些，我期待着今晚客场的胜利或平局。

08月25日奥林 VS 卡拉巴赫比赛分析直播