Viktoria Plzen vs Union SG - prediction, team news, lineups

Viktoria Plzen will begin their Europa League campaign on Thursday, when they welcome Union SG to Doosan Arena.

Having successfully navigated a Europa League playoff tie against Red Star Belgrade in August, the hosts will face Belgian opponents Union SG, who qualified for UEFA's secondary competition after suffering elimination from the final playoff round of the Champions League qualifiers last month.

Viktoria Plzen staged a remarkable comeback to enter the league phase of the Europa League, overturning Red Star's 3-0 first-leg advantage to win the second leg 5-1 on August 27.

The club's entry into the competition will be their third in three seasons, with the team having reached the round of 16 in 2024-25, before failing to reach the knockout stage in 2025-26 after losing a playoff tie with Panathinaikos.

Boss Radoslav Kovac has overseen 10 games in all competitions this term, including eight matches in their domestic league, but his side won just three times while losing on three occasions.

The hosts have kept two clean sheets in their last three fixtures, and they also netted 10 goals in their five most recent contests.

Plzen's form at home has certainly been mixed given they only triumphed in two of their six home games this campaign, losing twice at Doosan Arena.

Union SG failed to clinch the Belgian Pro League title in 2025-26, finishing second in their Championship playoff group to secure a Champions League playoff spot.

David Hubert's side unfortunately suffered a 6-5 aggregate defeat against Bodo/Glimt in that tie in August, though his team have won four of their last seven Europa League clashes, losing just twice in that period.

Their current campaign has been positive, with the club first in the Belgian top flight after six matchweeks having taken 16 points from a possible 18.

Since exiting the Champions League qualifiers, the visitors are unbeaten in five games, emerging as victors in each of their past four matches.

Union have also won four of their five away outings this term, scoring at least three goals in three of those fixtures, but they did concede seven goals in that stretch.

Viktoria Plzen could look to use a three-man defence featuring centre-backs Filip Prebsl, Sampson Dweh and Tobias Paliscak.

It would not be surprising to see a midfield three, with Lukas Cerv leading teammates Patrik Hrosovsky and Cheick Souare.

In the forward line, fans may see a pairing of Denis Visinsky and Prince Kwabena Adu, both of whom scored against Red Star in the second leg.

As for Union, Kevin Mac Allister's ligament injury is set to lead to an appearance for Nikki Havenaar in the backline alongside Massire Sylla and Ondrej Kricfalusi, while Relebohile Mofokeng and Mateo Biondic will lead the visitors' attack.

Midfielder Kamiel van de Perre is suspended for Thursday's game, meaning the most likely partner for Adem Zorgane is Rob Schoofs.

Wiegele; Prebsl, Dweh, Paliscak; Memic, Cerv, Hrosovsky, Souare, Doski; Visinsky, Adu

Koffi; Havenaar, Sylla, Kricfalusi; Patris, Schoofs, Zorgane, Smith; Zeneli; Mofokeng, Biondic

The visitors have not been particularly strong defensively, though their form in the final third has been excellent.

Viktoria Plzen's attack should be able to create chances, but Union's quality in forward areas could help them secure a point.

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

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