With a place in the Group stage up for grabs, the tie is nicely poised after the two sides played out a 2-2 draw in the first leg in Gothenburg last week.
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Aberdeen will host Hacken in the second leg of their Europa League playoff tie at Pittodrie on Thursday night. With a place in the Group stage up for grabs, the tie is nicely poised after the two sides played out a 2-2 draw in the first leg in Gothenburg last week. Goals either side of first half from Amor Layouni and Ibrahim Sadiq had put the Swedish outfit 2-0 up, but the Dons fought back the level the score thanks to two goals in the final quarter through Bojan Miovski and Nicky Devlin.
A huge #UEL night at Pittodrie. COYR! đź”´#StandFree pic.twitter.com/vDmYHpMCaz
— Aberdeen FC (@AberdeenFC) August 31, 2023
Aberdeen are heading into the match on the back of a 2-2 draw away to St Mirren in the Scottish Premiership last Sunday. Jonny Hayes put the Dons ahead three minutes from the break, but the Sanits came out all guns blazing in the second-half and took the lead thanks to Gren Kitlie’s 59th-minute equaliser from the penalty spot and Alex Greive’s 76th-minute effort. Just when it looked lie the Reds would end up on the losing side, Miovski converted a spot kick ten minutes into the injury time and made the score 2-2. Aberdeen, who claimed third spot in the 2022-23 Scottish top flight and thereby qualified for the Europa League playoffs, haven’t made the best of starts to the new campaign, recording just one win from their opening five games across all competitions, while drawing three fixtures in the process. Their lone victory this season came against Stirling in the League Cup earlier this month.
Hacken, on the other hand, won the Allsvenskan title last term courtesy of collecting 64 points from 30 league-games, seven points clear of the chasing pack. After being eliminated from the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round, the Wasps overcame Zalgiris 8-1 in the two-legged Europa League third qualifying round earlier this month. And now, Per-Mathias Hogmo’s men are just one win away from earning a spot in the group stage of Europe’s second tier club competition for the first time. Meanwhile, after the hard-fought draw against Aberdeen, Hacken traveled to Gotberg for a Swedish top flight fixture and lost 4-2 despite the fact that Amane Romeo and Ali Yousseg got on the scoresheet. It was their fifth top flight defeat of the season and Hogmo’s side are currently occupying third spot in the 2023 Allsvenskan standings.
Aberdeen probable starting lineup: Roos, Devlin, Rubezic, McKenzie, Morris, Clarkson, Shinnie, Hayes, Polvara, Miovski, Duk
Hacken probable starting lineup: Abrahamsson, Fridriksson, Sandberg, Hovland, Laursen, Rygaard, Sa. Gustafson, Romeo, Sadiq, Hrstic, Layouni
Aberdeen
| Opponents | Score |
| St Mirren | 2-2 (D) |
| Hacken | 2-2 (D) |
| Stirling | 1-2 (W) |
| Celtic | 1-3 (L) |
| Livingston | 0-0 (D) |
Hacken
| Opponents | Score |
| Goteborg | 4-2 (L) |
| Aberdeen | 2-2 (D) |
| Sirius | 3-2 (W) |
| Zalgiris | 5-0 (W) |
| Varberg | 2-0 (W) |
| Last 3 match-results | Score |
| Hacken draw Aberdeen | 2-2 |
| Hacken beat Aberdeen | 2-0 |
| Aberdeen beat Hacken | 5-1 |
The Europa League fixture between Aberdeen and Hacken will take place at Pittodrie Stadium on Friday at 12:15 am IST.
| Aberdeen vs Hacken | Key Details |
| Date | August 31 (UK) |
| Venue | Pittodrie Stadium |
| Kickoff time in UK | 7:45 pm (Thursday) |
| Kickoff time in Sweden | 8:45 pm (Thursday) |
| Kickoff time in India | 12:15 am (Friday) |
Football fans in UK can catch the live action via BBC Sport network. Meanwhile those in Sweden can watch the match on Sport Bladet Play.
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