Cukaricki will have an ecnounter with FC Twente in the first leg of their Europa Conference League third qualifying round tie on Thursday.
The hosts saw off Racing FC of Luxembourg to reach this stage, while FC Twente qualified for this round directly after finishing fourth in the Eredivisie last season.
The Serbian outfit Cukaricki defeated Racing FC 8-1 on aggregate to reach the third round qualifying round of this competition for the second successive campaign.
Head coach Dusan Kerkez will be hoping to go at least one better than his predecessor being in his first season in charge of the club, with his side also hoping to qualify beyond the qualifying stages of European competition for the first time in their history.
However, the Highlanders are clearly a side on the up, having recorded back-to-back third-placed finishes in the Serbian SuperLiga.
There is little doubt heading into Thursday’s contest as massive underdogs, though, undoubtedly requiring a positive result tp protect on their travels to the Netherlands next week.
Meanwhile, FC Twente are on the road to recovery themselves after a poor period which resulted in them being relegated to the Eerste Division at the end of the 2017-18 campaign.
This came less than a decade after since their historic Eredivisie victory under former England manager Steve McClaren in 2009-10, with the Dutch side reaching the quarter-finals of the Europa League in the following campaign.
However, they were banned from European competition for three years in 2015 following irregular transfer activities, starting a downward spiral which has been tough for them to come back from.
However, FC Twente now have the chance to reach the group stages of European competition for the first time in 10 years, with them heading into the two-legged affair against Cukaricki as huge favourites to advance.
Cukaricki vs FC Twente head to head
The two teams have not previously met in any competition and this will be their first meeting in the third round of their Europa Conference League qualifying tie.
Cukaricki latest home form
Cukaricki have recently been on a relatively good run of form at home, having lost just one of their eight most recent matches. They defeated Racing Union Luxembourg 4-0 in their last home game in the Europa Conference League. In their last five matches, they have scored eight goals and conceded five.
Cukaricki 1-1 Tuzla City 22/06/22
Cukaricki 1-0 Slask Wroclaw 29/06/22
Cukaricki 1-4 Backa Topola 09/07/22
Cukaricki 1-0 Napredak 24/07/22
Cukaricki 4-0 Racing Union Luxembourg 28/07/22
Cukaricki latest away form
Cukaricki have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having won each of their three most recent matches. They managed to defeat Mladost Novi Sad 2-0 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 12 goals and conceded six.
Olimpija 2-3 Cukaricki 25/06/22
Bravo 2-1 Cukaricki 28/06/22
Novi Pazar 1-2 Cukaricki 15/07/22
Racing Union Luxembourg 1-4 Cukaricki 21/07/22
Mladost Novi Sad 0-2 Cukaricki 31/07/22
FC Twente latest home form
Twente have recently been on a good run of form at home, as they have won each of their four most recent matches. They managed to defeat Bologna 4-1 in their last home game in a friendly. In their last five matches, they have scored 12 goals and conceded four.
Twente 1-2 Fortuna Sittard 07/05/22
Twente 3-0 Groningen 11/05/22
Twente 1-0 Nordsjaelland 03/07/22
Twente 3-1 Schalke 04 22/07/22
Twente 4-1 Bologna 29/07/22
FC Twente latest away form
Twente have recently been on a relatively good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their six most recent matches. They defeated Feyenoord 2-1 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and also conceded six.
AZ 0-1 Twente 13/03/22
Fortuna Dusseldorf 4-0 Twente 24/03/22
NEC 0-2 Twente 09/04/22
Heracles 1-1 Twente 30/04/22
Feyenoord 1-2 Twente 15/05/22
Cukaricki news
Cukaricki head into Thursday’s contest with a clean bill of health, with Kerkez likely to pick the same XI which defeated Racing Union Luxembourg 4-0.
Mohamed Badamosi, Djordje Ivanovic and Mihajlo Spasojevic all got on the scoresheet in the aforementioned game and will aim to deliver the goods once again.
FC Twente news
FC Twente will travel without defender Robin Propper due to an ankle injury, but former Norwich City striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel is set to lead the line.
After wrapping up their pre-season preparations with a 4-1 victory over Bologna, it would be a surprise if Ron Jans decides to make changes in the starting lineup.
Prediction and Odds
Off the back of five straight victories across all competitions, Cukaricki will hope to catch FC Twente cold given that it is the Dutch side’s first competitive match of the season.
While the Serbian side would keep things competitive, we expect the visitors to have enough to claim an advantage.
Odds: 1 2.30 X 2.05 2 2.15
Probable outcomes
Cukaricki 0-1 Twente
Cukaricki 0-2 Twente
Cukaricki 1-2 Twente
Cukaricki 1-3 Twente
Cukaricki 1-1 Twente
