Thursday's Europa League predictions including Hearts vs. FC Zurich

Zalgiris vs. Ludogorets (Thursday, 5.00pm)

With a place in the Europa League group stages on the line, FK Zalgiris welcome Ludogorets Razgrad to the LFF Stadionas on Thursday in the second leg of their qualifying tie.

The home side have a one-goal deficit to make up from the first leg while the visitors seeks to hold on to their narrow advantage from last week's encounter.

We say: FK Zalgiris 1-1 Ludogorets Razgrad (Ludogorets Razgrad to win 2-1 on aggregate)

In what is set to be an all-or-nothing affair, we expect an absorbing contest with both teams going at each other over the course of the 90 minutes. However, we are tipping a share of the spoils here with the away side going through on aggregate.

Larnaca vs. Dnipro-1 (Thursday, 5.00pm)

AEK Larnaca and Dnipro-1 go head to head at the AEK Arena in the second leg of their Europa League qualifying playoff-round clash on Thursday.

Following a hard-earned 2-1 victory in the first-leg, the Cyprus outfit are now 90 minutes away from a place in the group stages and will look to cross the finish line in fine fashion

We say: AEK Larnaca X-Y Dnipro-1

AEK Larnaca got the job done away from home last week and will head into Thursday looking to pick up where they dropped off in the first leg. We are backing them to make use of their home crowd advantage to claim the victory, albeit by another slender margin.

Silkeborg vs. HJK Helsinki (Thursday, 5.30pm)

Silkeborg and HJK Helsinki go head to head at the JYSK Park in the second leg of their Europa League qualifying playoff round clash on Thursday.

The Danish outfit have won their last four home games across all competitions and will look to keep the juggernaut rolling as they attempt to overturn their first-leg deficit.

We say: Silkeborg 1-1 HJK Helsinki

Silkeborg and HJK are evenly-matched heading into Thursday and we expect a close contest that should be decided by fine margins. While Silkeborg are slight favourites to come out on top — given their home advantage — we predict the visitors will hold out for a share of the spoils and claim an aggregate victory.

Omonia vs. Gent (Thursday, 6.00pm)

Omonia host Gent on Thursday for a place in the Europa League group stage.

The Cypriots surprisingly won 2-0 in Belgium last week, so can even afford a narrow defeat in the second leg and still progress.

We say: Omonia 1-2 Gent

We can envisage Gent coming close to turning the tie around, but having scored two goals in Belgium, Omonia will be confident of scoring a goal on home soil.

That would make progressing very difficult for Vanhaezebrouck's side, with potentially too much damage done in last week's first leg.

Sheriff Tiraspol vs. Pyunik (Thursday, 6.00pm)

A place in the Europa League is up for grabs when Sheriff Tiraspol welcome FC Pyunik to the Stadionul Sheriff on Tuesday in the second leg of their qualifier.

Following a goalless stalemate in the first leg, both sides have all to play for coming into the clash which promises to be an enthralling affair.

We say: Sheriff Tiraspol 2-0 FC Pyunik

Pyunik have been poor at both ends of the pitch recently and we can see that trend continuing here. We are tipping Sheriff Tiraspol to cruise to a comfortable victory at the end of the 90 minutes.

Fenerbahce vs. Austria Vienna (Thursday, 6.00pm)

Fenerbahce take on Austria Vienna in the second leg of their Europa League play-off on Thursday.

The Turkish side won 2-0 in Austria last week, so they will feel confident of reaching the group stage with home advantage on their side.

We say: Fenerbahce 2-0 Austria Vienna

Ultimately, it is difficult to see anything beyond a comfortable home win on Thursday.

Fenerbahce outplayed their opponents away from home last week, and we expect them to keep Austria Vienna at arms length once again to wrap up their progression to the group stage.

Sivasspor vs. Malmo (Thursday, 6.00pm)

Sivasspor and Malmo go head to head in the second leg of their Europa League qualifying playoff-round clash at the Yeni 4 Eylul Stadyumu on Thursday.

The Turkish side will be looking to pick up their first win of the season and mount a memorable comeback following last week's first-leg defeat.

We say: Sivasspor 1-2 Malmo

With a comfortable first-leg victory in the bag, Malmo will head into the midweek clash with sky-high confidence as they look to finish off the job. Sivasspor have staggered into the new season and we predict their struggles will continue, with the Swedish outfit claiming another victory on Thursday.

Shamrock vs. Ferencvaros (Thursday, 8.00pm)

Shamrock Rovers play host to Ferencvaros in the second leg of their Europa League playoff fixture knowing that the tie is effectively already over.

The Irish side went down by a 4-0 scoreline in Hungary, leaving them with the task of pulling off one of European football's greatest comebacks to earn a place in the group stages of this competition.

We say: Shamrock Rovers 1-3 Ferencvaros (Ferencvaros to win 7-1 on aggregate)

With pride at stake, we expect Shamrock to do everything possible to push their more illustrious opponents on Thursday evening. However, we cannot see anything but an away win, potentially with the game having remained on level terms come the half-time whistle.

Olympiacos vs. Apollon Limassol (Thursday, 8.00pm)

Olympiacos welcome Apollon Limassol to the Karaiskakis Stadium for the second leg of their Europa League qualifying playoff-round clash on Thursday.

Following a 1-1 draw in the first leg, both sides are still very much alive in this contest and will be up for the challenge as they look to get one over each other with the finish line just 90 minutes away.

We say: Olympiacos 2-1 Apollon Limassol

Off the back of last week's draw, there is still all to play for and we expect both teams to take the game to each other in search of a place in the European competition. Olympiacos are slight favourites, given their home advantage and Apollon's poor away form, and we predict they will do just enough to come away with the victory.

Hearts vs. FC Zurich (Thursday, 8.00pm)

Seeking to overturn a 2-1 deficit from the first leg, Scottish outfit Hearts welcome Swiss champions FC Zurich to Tynecastle for the second leg of their Europa League playoff on Thursday night.

The winners of this tie will progress to the Europa League group stage, while the losers will drop down into the Europa Conference League.

We say: Hearts 1-1 FC Zurich (FC Zurich to win 3-2 on aggregate)

Hosting a European match for the first time since 2016, Hearts will be confident of turning the tie around at Tynecastle, but they will need to be on top of their game across the pitch if they are to progress past a resurgent Zurich outfit.

However, the Swiss side showed their European experience in the first leg and we can see them frustrating the Jam Tarts to edge through on aggregate.