Lille travel to Austria for a first-ever meeting with Sturm Graz in the first leg of their Europa Conference League last-16 tie on Thursday.
Both teams come into the fixture on the back of important domestic wins at the weekend, which have maintained efforts to reach the Champions League next season.
Match preview
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In the season where Sturm have finally made it past a UEFA group stage for the first time at the eighth attempt, they are also threatening to disrupt the apple cart in Austria.
Red Bull Salzburg's dominance has been prevalent for over a decade in the Austrian Bundesliga, but an unbeaten start to 2024 means Sturm are still in the hunt to snatch the title off them.
A run of nine games without defeat domestically has also seen them now win three in a row without conceding, including a 4-0 victory over Wolfsburger at the weekend.
Christian Ilzer's side have also held Salzburg away during this run, as there is still just a two-point gap between the sides heading into the final weeks of the season.
Sturm's last three defeats across all competitions have all come in Europe, at the back end of their Europa League campaign, where they managed to still finish third ahead of Rakow Czestochowa with just four points.
However, there were no struggles in their playoff round clash with Slovan Bratislava after dropping into the UECL, as Sturm thrashed the Slovakian side 5-1 on aggregate to set up this last 16 encounter.
Die Schwoazn will now look to improve on their previous best performances in Europe, which were last-16 eliminations in the 1975-76 Cup Winners' Cup and the 1983-84 UEFA Cup.
Standing in their way is a Lille side whose form has been up and down of late, but still good enough to maintain a position in Ligue 1's top four.
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A 1-0 win at Reims on Saturday was much-needed, ending Lille's six-game winless run on the road against top-flight sides, and it kept them fourth in an increasingly competitive race for Champions League football.
On the continent itself, Lille won their UECL group to advance directly into the last 16, but to say they flattered to deceive would be fair.
In a very straightforward group, including a Slovan Bratislava side that Sturm thrashed last month, part-timers KI Klaksvik, and group stage debutants Olimpija Ljubljana, Lille were not exactly at their best.
Taking 14 points from their six group games looks good on paper, but drawing away to KI brought great criticism, while they also needed extra time to beat Rijeka in qualifying.
Like Sturm, Lille are also looking to progress past the last 16 in Europe for the first time, as two Champions League knockout stage appearances, and four in the Europa League, have never seen them make the quarter-finals.
Team News
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Sturm will be able to welcome back defender Gregory Wuthrich after he served a domestic suspension in their 4-0 win over Wolfsburger at the weekend.
Attacker Seedy Jatta is making positive strides in his recovery from injury, but the Norwegian is unlikely to be ready for this one.
Aleksandar Borkovic and Brighton & Hove Albion loanee Kjell Scherpen are both confirmed absentees, with Vitezslav Jaros likely to keep his place in goal.
Lille boss Paulo Fonseca often went strong with his team selection in Europe despite being in a rather modest group, so that should suggest there will not be many changes here from the side that beat Reims.
There are a number of players out injured for the visitors though, including important midfield duo Remy Cabella and Adam Ounas.
Ivan Cavaleiro, Samuel Umtiti and recent signing Andrej Ilic are also among the players currently on the sidelines for LOSC at present.
Sturm Graz possible starting lineup:
Jaros; Gazibegovic, Affengruber, Lavalee, Schnegg; Horvat, Gorenc Stankovic, Prass, Kiteishvili; Sarkaria, Biereth
Lille possible starting lineup:
Chevalier; Tiago Santos, Diakite, Yoro, Gudmundsson; Andre, Gomes, Yazici; Zhegrova, David, Haraldsson
We say: Sturm Graz 1-1 Lille
Lille's form on the road in Europe has given them little to shout about this season, following their struggles in Croatia, Slovakia and even the Faroe Islands.
While there is undoubtedly more star quality on the opposing team, Sturm will be confident in front of home support that they can take something to France in a week's time, given their superb start to 2024.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
