Needing to pull off a captivating home comeback to keep their Champions League dream alive, Ferencvaros host Danish giants FC Midtjylland in Budapest on Tuesday evening.
The Hungarian powerhouses fell to a 2-0 loss in the first leg of their qualifying third-round battle, and failure to turn the tide in their favour will see them relegated to the Europa League.
Match preview
A 7-1 aggregate crushing of Welsh titans The New Saints - where a 5-0 home thrashing preceded a 2-1 away success - was not a sign of things to come from Ferencvaros in Champions League qualifying, as Midtjylland proved a class above in Scandinavia last week.
Strikes either side of the half-time whistle from experienced Polish striker Adam Buksa and Franculino propelled Midtjylland to a straightforward two-goal success on August 6, one which leaves Ferencvaros' UCL hopes hanging by the thinnest of threads.
However, the reigning Hungarian champions responded to their European setback with a 2-0 win of their own on Saturday, easing past the challenge of Diosgyor in top-flight action to make it two for two in the 2024-25 campaign, although they are being kept off the top of the table by MTK Budapest and their superior goal difference.
Frequent competitors in European competitions during the 21st century, Ferencvaros - who are now under the tutelage of Pascal Jansen - memorably competed in the group phase of the 2020-21 Champions League, although the Barcelona, Juventus and Dynamo Kiev-sized obstacles proved too difficult to overcome.
A couple of years later, the hosts made their mark in the Europa League - reaching the 2022-23 last 16 before being seen off by Bayer Leverkusen - and they will have a shot at UEL redemption in the qualifying playoff round even if they fail to pull off an astounding turnaround on Tuesday.
Upcoming visitors Midtjylland have a similar Champions League goal in mind, having also not reached the proper tournament since the behind-closed-doors era of 2020-21, where Ajax, Atalanta BC and Liverpool sent them packing at the first hurdle.
A handful of unsuccessful Europa League and Europa Conference League jaunts have followed for the Wolves', whose bite proved too fierce for Ferencvaros at the MCH Arena last week, and the overall form book makes for extremely pleasant reading for the Danes.
Indeed, Midtjylland also followed up last week's first-leg performance with a 2-0 domestic win - making light work of Vejle BK for their fourth successive victory and fourth straight clean sheet in all competitions, and their third by a 2-0 scoreline on the bounce.
Undefeated since a 3-0 beatdown at the hands of Silkeborg at the end of April, Thomas Thomasberg's men have navigated their last 12 competitive games without losing, although a record of just two wins from their last seven away matches offers Ferencvaros a crumb of encouragement.
However, Midtjylland need only avoid a calamitous collapse to earn a playoff date with either Slovan Bratislava or APOEL, while also consigning Ferencvaros to a Europa League qualifying finale against KI Klaksvik or Borac Banja Luka.
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Team News
With no injury or disciplinary concerns to report, Ferencvaros boss Jansen had the luxury of making several changes for the weekend's top-flight success, where Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane was responsible for both goals on the day.
The 24-year-old Tunisia international has almost certainly played his way into a start on Tuesday, likely on the left of Jansen's 4-2-3-1 setup at the expense of Tosin Kehinde.
Ferencvaros could have been facing a three-goal deficit on Tuesday had goalkeeper Denes Dibusz not stopped Aral Simsir's penalty on the stroke of half time; the 33-year-old continues in goal after being an unused substitute in Hungary's short-lived Euros campaign.
The Midtjylland doctors are being kept busy at present, though, and one of the visitors' long-term absentees is ex-Arsenal man Kristoffer Olsson, who is on the long road to recovery from blood clots on the brain.
Cho Gue-sung (knee), Paulinho (surgery) and Marrony (ACL) are also in the care of the medical team, as is 20-year-old left-back Victor Bak, although the latter's unspecified condition is not thought to be severe.
Franculino's goal off the bench last week may have given Thomasberg some food for thought up front, but Oliver Sorensen was on target in the win over Vejle and should retain his spot up front alongside Buksa.
Ferencvaros possible starting lineup:
Dibusz; Makreckis, Cisse, Gustavo, Civic; Rommens, Maiga; Traore, Borges, Ben Romdhane; Pesic
FC Midtjylland possible starting lineup:
Olafsson; Andersson, Diao, Bech Sorensen, Juninho; Osorio, Martinez, Castillo, Simsir; Sorensen, Buksa
We say: Ferencvaros 0-1 FC Midtjylland (Midtjylland win 3-0 on aggregate)
While Ferencvaros simply have to go gung-ho in order to stand a chance of progression, they will come up against a Midtjylland defence that has proven impenetrable over the summer, and gaps will inevitably open up for the Danes to exploit.
Thomasberg's troops should make at least one of those opportunities count to advance to the final stage of qualifying, as Ferencvaros accept their Europa League fate.
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