Astana and Budućnost meet at Ortalıq Stadion, in a match for this phase of the UEFA Europa League (2nd Qualifying Round). This will be the first direct confrontation between these two teams, as they have never met before. Particular attention is needed for the home / away condition, as both teams present significantly different results at home and away.
Astana :
The home team plays its first game in this edition of the UEFA Europa League with the intention of taking advantage of the home factor to achieve a positive result. This is a stronger team with the support of its fans, since in the last 30 games it has registered 5 victories, 2 draws and 8 losses as a visitor, with 19 goals scored and 32 suffered; against 10 victories, 2 draws and 3 defeats in his stadium, with 33 goals scored and 14 suffered. The team comes to this match after a away win against Ordabasy by (1‑2). In the last 10 matches played at home for all competitions, Astana won 6, drew 2 and lost 2. The team allowed goals to the opponent in 7 of the last 10 matches, so their defense needs to improve, But their attack has scored regularly, having scored goals in 9 of the last 10 games. In their home matches there is a tendency for goals, since 11 of the last 12 matches have ended with Over 1.5 goals. In the last 7 home matches for all competitions there is 1 period that stands out: they have scored 5 of their 11 goals between minutes (76′ ‑ 90 ‘).
Astana come into this game after a 1-2 win at the Ordabasy stadium visit, in a Kazakhstan championship match. It should be noted that the home team reaches this stage of the Europa League after being eliminated in the previous rounds of the Champions League by Dynamo Brest. In this match against Budućnost, coach Paul Ashworth must play in the usual 4-3-3, favoring the maintenance of possession and organized attacks, trying to avoid suffering goals. Sigurdjónsson is one of the weapons of this team, he is very strong in passing, shooting and offensive stopped balls. For this game the coach of the house can count on all his players.
Budućnost:
The visiting team will make its debut in this edition of the UEFA Europa League with the intention of achieving a positive result, taking advantage of the home factor. This is a team that, curiously, tends to achieve more positive results as a visitor than at home, since in the last 30 games they have registered 4 victories, 4 draws and 7 losses as a visitor, with 10 goals scored and 15 suffered; against 4 victories, 1 draw and 10 defeats in their stadium, with 14 goals scored and 23 suffered. The team comes to this match after a home loss against Ludogorets by (1‑3).
Like their opponents in this game, Budućnost reaches this stage of the Europa League after being eliminated from the Champions League: defeat against Ludogorets by 1-3. In this match against Astana, coach Mladen Milinkovic must act with a strategy similar to that of the last game, that is, privileging the defensive organization and counterattacks, especially through the left flank. It should be noted that Montenegrins have several weaknesses in maintaining possession and scoring. For this game the visiting coach can count on all his players.
