Viktoria Plzen will hope to earn their first Europa League point of the season when they take on visitors Levski Sofia at Doosan Arena on Thursday.

The hosts are currently 32nd in the league phase with zero points following their 2-1 defeat against Ferencvaros on October 15, whereas Levski Sofia are 25th with one point.

Match preview

Viktoria Plzen's first two games in the Europa League have not gone to plan, with the club losing 3-0 against Union St. Gilloise and 2-1 against Ferencvaros.

The latter result was particularly disappointing given they were arguably the better team, though they missed two of their three big chances before ultimately conceding an 82nd-minute penalty.

Manager Radoslav Kovac's side are currently ninth in the Czech top flight with 16 points from 11 league fixtures, and though his team beat Jablonec 3-2 on October 18, he has overseen four losses and one stalemate from his last six matches as boss.

The hosts managed to score 10 goals in those six outings, though it will be more concerning to the head coach that his side conceded 12 times.

Viktoria Plzen may have beaten Mlada Boleslav 3-0 at home on October 10, but they were winless in their prior three clashes at Doosan Arena, suffering two defeats.

Levski Sofia come into Thursday's contest on the back of a 2-0 victory against Spartak Pleven in the Bulgarian Cup, extending their unbeaten streak to three games.

They won twice in that period, though their stalemate was a 1-1 draw with NEC Nijmegen in matchweek two of the Europa League.

The visitors were competitive for much of the first half of that fixture, but they faced three big chances in the second half while only producing one shot from inside the box.

It should also be noted Sinite have struggled in the final third, netting one or fewer goals in four of their seven most recent clashes, failing to score on two occasions.

Manager Julio Velazquez will be delighted by his team's showings on the road considering they are unbeaten in six away matches, winning four times, while they have only lost one of their past 17 fixtures on their travels.

Viktoria Plzen Europa League form:

Viktoria Plzen form (all competitions):

Levski Sofia Europa League form:

Levski Sofia form (all competitions):

Team News

Viktoria Plzen midfielders Stefan Pirgic and Patrik Hrosovsky started last time out in Europe, and they will hope to retain their places in the XI.

Christophe Kabongo is set to lead the hosts' attack, though he will need support from attacking midfielder Jiri Panos.

Central defenders Sampson Dweh and Filip Prebsl will almost certainly be trusted to shield goalkeeper Dominik Tapaj.

Levski Sofia will have to rely on former Liverpool star Marko Grujic in the middle of the pitch if they are to remain compact without the ball.

Striker Reinaldo can be pencilled into the lineup, while centre-backs Christian Makoun and Kristian Dimitrov are expected to start in defence.

Viktoria Plzen possible starting lineup:

Tapaj; Gabriel, Dweh, Prebsl, Doski; Pirgic, Hrosovsky; Sojka, Panos, Memic; Kabongo

Levski Sofia possible starting lineup:

Vutsov; Aldair, Dimitrov, Makoun, Maicon; Serginho, Grujic, Moubarik; Kusso, Reinaldo, Bala

We say: Viktoria Plzen 1-1 Levski Sofia

Though Viktoria Plzen are playing at home, the visitors boast an excellent record on the road.

Levski Sofia have not been particularly prolific of late, so perhaps they will have to settle for another draw in the Europa League.

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