Slovenian side Mura visit the Kadriorg Stadium to face Estonian outfit Nomme Kalju on Thursday in the first qualifying round for the 2020/21 UEFA Europa League
Kalju got the chance to qualify for the Europa League after finishing third in the Estonian top flight last term. The Pink Panthers only lost three of their 36 league games last season, but 11 draws saw them finish 13 points behind champions Flora.
Mark Kristal’s side won the Estonia’s top division in 2018 and currently sit 3rd in the 2020 standings, 1 point behind second-place Paide and 14 points behind Flora.
Kalju come into this game on the back of three straight wins and are unbeaten in their previous five outings in all competitions.
The Pink Panthers have also kept a clean sheet in each of their previous 3 victories, scoring a total of 10 goals in reply.
Kalju have been in good form at both ends of the pitch recently, although the visit of Mura is likely to pose the Estonian side some problems.
Mura qualified for the competition after finishing foith in the Slovenian top flight last season. 14 wins, 14 draws and eight defeats saw Mura pick up 56 points, 13 fewer than champions Celje.
The Black and Whites have played two domestic games so far this season, beating the defending champions Celje 2-0 on the opening day of the campaign and beating Tabor Sezana 3-0 in the second round of matches.
Ante Simundza could not have wished for a better start to the 2020/21 season, but his side could be rusty having only just started the new campaign.
Head-to-head: This is the first competitive meeting between Nomme Kalju and Mura, so it’s difficult to predict which way this game will go.
Team news: Kalju are likely to be without forward Alex Tamm and goalkeeper Henri Perk on Thursday, although top scorer Vladyslav Khomutov – who has nine goals in 16 league games this season – is fit.
On the other hand, Mura have no injury concerns at the moment. Luka Bobicanec and Nino Kouter will both be looking to add to their tallies after netting in the club’s first league game last time out.
This is set to be a closely-fought contest between two evenly-matched teams. However, the home side are expected to come out on top.
Forebet predicts that Nomme Kalju will edge Mura, with a single goal likely to be the difference between the teams.