Molde vs Galatasaray

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Molde will face a higher caliber opponent when they play Turkish champions Galatasaray in the first leg of their qualifying playoff-round matchup on Wednesday after crushing the KI Klaksvik Champions League dream earlier this month.

Erling Moe's team defeated KI 3-2 on aggregate to advance to the decisive round, while the visitors to Aker Stadion defeated Olimpija Ljubljana by four goals over two legs without answering.

Molde overcame a first-leg deficit to knock off Faroe Islands trailblazers KI, much like they did in their second-round qualification match against HJK Helsinki. However, they had to overcome a significant scare to put an end to the minnows' continental dream.

As the first team from the Faroe Islands to advance to the third round of Champions League qualifying, KI stunned Molde with a 2-1 first-leg victory, but Kristian Eriksen's early goal in the return leg on last Tuesday necessitated an additional 30 minutes. At the very least, this ensured a Europa Conference League group-stage spot.

With 112 minutes remaining, Martin Linnes doubled Molde's lead for the game, preventing KI from forcing the game into the dreaded penalty shootout and allowing the Norwegian champions to squeeze into the playoff round.

Molde, who has only qualified for the group stages so far, is still vying to make their first Champions League official appearance since the 1999–2000 season. Molde was eliminated by Ferencvaros in 2020–21 after a 3–3 aggregate draw due to the now-abolished away goals rule.

Due to their efforts on the continent, MFK's domestic form has suffered, as they have drawn their last two Eliteserien matches against Sandefjord and Valerenga, 2-2 and 0-0, respectively. However, an 11-game home unbeaten streak, during which they have kept eight clean sheets, gives some hope of a first-leg upset.

Galatasaray also struggled to establish themselves upon returning to the Champions League preliminary rounds; nevertheless, Okan Buruk's team managed to defeat Zalgiris 3-2 on aggregate in the second round before defeating Olimpija Ljubljana in a more simple two-legged victory.

Prior to last Tuesday's return leg in Istanbul, Galatasaray's place in the playoff round had already been all but assured thanks to a 3-0 victory on Slovenian soil. A single goal from Mauro Icardi helped the 10-man Turkish champions, who had Lucas Torreira sent off, to their third straight Champions League victory.

Since tying 2-2 with Zalgiris in their first European match, Galatasaray has focused on playing great defense, and they were successful the second time around in the Super Lig.

Galatasaray will be heavy favorites to advance to the Champions League group stages for the first time since the 2019–20 season, ending a rare season without any type of European football in 2022–23. Galatasaray has kept five clean sheets in their past five games across all competitions.

This week will mark Molde and Galatasaray's first competitive meeting, but the Turkish champions have only triumphed once in their previous four matches against Norwegian opposition, defeating Rosenborg in the 1998–99 Champions League before falling to Tromso 2-1 on aggregate in the opening round of the 2005–06 UEFA Cup.