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Sports Mole previews Tuesday's Champions League clash between HJK Helsinki and Panevezys, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

HJK Helsinki have a mountain to climb in the second leg of their Champions League first qualifying round fixture with Panevezys following a difficult first leg in Lithuania last week.

Panevezys were 3-0 winners in the reverse contest between the two sides, and the visitors will be aiming to create history by reaching the second qualifying round of this competition for the first time.

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Match preview

HJK are the reigning Finnish champions, winning the title for the 33rd time last season, which saw them qualify for this stage of the Champions League, but it is difficult to see them progressing any further.

Indeed, Toni Korkeakunnass's side struggled in the first leg last week, with Panevezys netting three times without reply in order to place themselves in an excellent position to advance to the next stage.

HJK are preparing to play their 85th Champions League match, with 31 of their previous 84 bringing wins, and they played in the group stage of the 1998-99 competition.

Klubi featured in the group stage of the Europa Conference League last term, meanwhile, but they were only able to collect two points from six matches to finish bottom of the section.

HJK are 16 matches into their current domestic campaign, and despite losing 3-0 to Ilves in their last game on July 6, the team sit top of the division, boasting 28 points from 16 matches.

Panevezys, meanwhile, were only founded in 2015, but they won Lithuania's top flight for the second time last year in order to qualify for this stage of the Champions League.

Stijn Vreven's side have featured in the early qualifying rounds for the Europa Conference League in each of the last three seasons, and they progressed to the second qualifying round last term.

This is the club's first-ever participation in the Champions League, meaning that history has already been created, but they will be looking for more on Tuesday night.

Panevezys are 21 matches into their domestic campaign, but they are currently down in ninth position in the table, only picking up 21 points, which has left them some 28 points off the summit.

As a result, their strong first-leg triumph came as a huge surprise, especially having entered the match off the back of successive defeats on home soil.

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Team News

HJK have not reported any fresh injury concerns from their first-leg defeat last week, so it is expected that the Finnish outfit will have the same squad for this match.

Luke Plange, who is on loan at the club from Crystal Palace, has scored six times in 17 appearances this season, and the 21-year-old is again set to feature in the final third of the field.

Hassane Bande is also set to retain his spot in the XI, while there should again be a position in the middle of the home side's midfield for Lucas Lingman.

As for Panevezys, head coach Vreven will be forced to make at least one change from the first leg, as Cheikhou Dieng is suspended following his red card last time out.

Noel Mbo, who is a former Charlton Athletic and Gillingham academy player, could be the one to benefit, with the 25-year-old scoring off the bench in the first leg, and the goal made him the team's top scorer this term with four.

The team could otherwise be unchanged, though, with Sivert Gussias again set to lead the line despite the fact that he has only managed two goals in all competitions this season.

HJK Helsinki possible starting lineup:
Maenpaa; Boamah, Toivio, Tomas; Keskinen, Kanellopoulos, Lingman, Pallas; Hostikka, Plange, Bande

Panevezys possible starting lineup:
Timbur; Rasimavicius, Dubra, Kilmavicius, Mazan; Veliulis, Palacios, Gorobsov, De Vega, Mbo; Gussias

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We say: HJK Helsinki 2-1 Panevezys (Panevezys win 4-2 on aggregate)

HJK will fancy their chances of winning on Tuesday, but it is very difficult to imagine them having enough to overturn the three-goal first-leg defeat. As a result, we are backing HJK to triumph, but Panevezys should head into the second qualifying round of the Champions League.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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