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ECL opponents Edinburgh have a lot in common with the Lucerne team, both historically and in current terms.
Legend:
Was visibly pissed off after the defeat in St. Gallen
Mario Frick.
Freshfocus/Claudio Thoma
On Thursday Lucerne meets Hibernian Edinburgh in the first leg of the 3rd qualifying round of the Conference League. The Scots failed to start the new season in front of their home crowd at the weekend. They lost 3-2 to St Mirren, but were two goals down after 17 minutes.
The hosts from the Scottish capital fought back and equalized the score. Shortly before the end, however, they conceded the decisive goal.
Duel with the first British European Cup participant
The Lucerne team also suffered a setback in the championship on Sunday. In the 2-1 defeat in St. Gallen, they successfully defended themselves for a long time. However, as the game progressed, the Central Swiss ran out of strength three days after the showdown against Djurgarden.
Now follows the duel between the four-time Scottish champions and the Swiss champions from 1989. Internationally, both clubs have not broken any ropes in the recent past. Lucerne’s greatest success dates back to 1960, when they advanced to the quarter-finals of the European Cup Winners’ Cup.
Hibernian were the first British club to play a European Cup game. In 1955/56 the Scots made it straight to the semi-finals.
Big names are waiting
Reaching the group stage should be a Herculean task for the winner of this duel. Aston Villa, a resurgent traditional English club with players like Philippe Coutinho, the Argentinian world champion goalie Emiliano Martinez or the Frenchman Moussa Diaby, who has just been transferred for 55 million euros, is waiting in the playoffs. But first, Hibernian Edinburgh and FC Luzern will have a duel on an equal footing.