Anderlecht fought to maintain their last-16 placement in Europa League by thin margins after securing the 10th position of 36 tabletops even though they did not reach automatic qualification based on goal differences. In their Play-off match versus Fenerbahce, the team faced a 3-0 defeat in the opening game.
During the first half Dusan Tadic and Edin Dzeko delivered two goals to claim control for the game for Fenerbahce which secured them a spot in the knockout stage and ended Anderlecht's away games with three straight losses in every competition.
Anderlecht revived from their previous Turkish loss by beating Charleroi 1-0 to secure sixth place in the Belgian Pro League after Luis Vazquez scored in the second half.
Anderlecht continue their fight to avoid elimination in the Europa League although history shows 135 out of 136 teams in this same situation ran out of luck. Similar to Valencia in 2013-14 Anderlecht can learn from the example of beating Basel 5-3 by overcoming a 3-0 first-leg deficit.
The team led by David Hubert aims to prevent a consecutive four-game Europa League loss which would mark their first defeat sequence in competition history while suffering through a combined score of 9-3.
Since December 11 of the previous year Fenerbahce has had a record of winning without losing which continues today as Jose Mourinho's team maintains a 14-game unbeaten streak and five successive victories.
Three days after netting three goals past Anderlecht in the Europa League, the Yellow Canaries secured a 3-1 home win over Kasimpasa in the Turkish Super Liga last Sunday. With this victory, they remain second in the table, six points behind leaders Galatasaray, whom they will face in a highly anticipated clash next Monday. The upcoming match against Galatasaray could prove pivotal in their pursuit of the league title.
Fenerbahce, who narrowly advanced to the Europa League playoffs after finishing 24th in the League Phase despite failing to win their last three games, are now in a strong position to secure a place in the last 16. This would mark only the second time in three seasons and the fourth time in the last 13 years that they have reached this stage of the competition. Their recent form in Europe has provided a glimmer of hope for fans, who are eager to see the team make a deep run in the tournament.
Mourinho's men will be aiming to win both legs of a knockout tie in major European competition for the first time since the 2006-07 season. They will fancy their chances of achieving this feat on Thursday, as they have been in strong form against Anderlecht, winning four and drawing one of their last five meetings. The team's confidence will be high as they look to continue their European journey and make a statement on the continental stage.
