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Sports Mole previews Thursday's Europa League clash between FC Midtjylland and Hibernian, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

FC Midtjylland and Hibernian will get their European campaigns underway on Thursday evening when they meet in the first leg of their second qualifying round tie in the Europa League.

The hosts started their 2025-26 season with a 3-3 draw in the Danish Superliga, while Thursday's encounter marks the visitors first competitive fixture of the term.

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Match preview

FC Midtjylland earned their place in the Europa League qualifying rounds with a second-placed finish in the Danish Superliga, and while that looks like a strong season on paper, the Wolves would have been devastated with how their campaign ended.

Midtjylland went into 2024-25 as the reigning champions after beating Brondby to the title by one point in 2023-24, and the Wolves were in the driving seat to win back-to-back trophies heading into the post-split fixtures as they finished top of the standings with a four-point lead over Copenhagen. 

However, five wins, two draws and three defeats in the post-split season proved not enough to maintain their lead and crown, as they heartbreakingly finished one point behind eventual champions Copenhagen.

Thomas Thomasberg's side will be eager to put that devastation behind them in 2025-26, and after fighting from 2-0 and 3-2 down against Odense Boldklub in their Superliga opener last week, Midtjylland are now aiming for their first win of the season. 

Midtjylland have managed to qualify for the Europa League in three of the last four seasons, and the Wolves will look to draw confidence from their continental experience when they host Hibernian. 

As for Hibernian, David Gray's side enjoyed a superb 2024-25 season, climbing from an eighth-placed finish in 2023-24 to placing third in the Scottish Premiership last term. 

Hibs secured their entry into the Europa League qualifying rounds as a result, and Gray will now be aiming to guide the team into the league phase of a European competition for the first time in the modern era - as Hibs have never reached the group stage since UEFA revamped their tournaments.

Hibernian came close to competing in the Conference League in 2023-24, but a humiliating 8-0 aggregate loss to Aston Villa in the playoff qualification round ended their European dreams. 

Already faced with a difficult opponent in their road to the Europa League league phase, Hibernian will be hoping to take a positive result from their Danish trip before hosting Midtjylland at the Easter Road Stadium next week.

Hibs are in dismal form on their travels heading into this one, though, as Gray's side have failed to win any of their last five matches away from home.

FC Midtjylland form (all competitions):

Hibernian form (all competitions):

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Team News

FC Midtjylland are expected to be without the services of Gue-Sung Cho (knee) and Ousmane Diao (foot) due to ongoing injury problems. 

A strike force of Franculino Dju and Adam Buksa scored all three goals between them in the 3-3 draw to Odense Boldklub last week, and the duo are anticipated to continue their strike partnership on Thursday. 

As for Hibernian, Kieron Bowie and Martin Boyle were both key parts of their forward line in 2024-25, and both are likely to start once again in this one. 

At the opposite end of the pitch, a back three of Jack Iredale, Warren O'Hora and Rocky Kiranga could be flanked by brothers Chris Cadden and Nicky Cadden. 

FC Midtjylland possible starting lineup:

Lossl; Mbabu, Lee, Sorensen, Jensen; Osorio, Bravo, Silva, Gogorza; Buksa, Dju

Hibernian possible starting lineup:

Smith; Iredale, O'Hora, Kiranga; C Cadden, McGrath, Levitt, N Cadden; Boyle, Bowie, Mulligan

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We say: FC Midtjylland 2-1 Hibernian

 

We expect this matchup to be a tight encounter between two of the strongest teams involved at this stage of the competition, but with Midtjylland's competitive season already underway and also boasting the home advantage, we expect the hosts to secure a narrow first-leg lead.

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

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