Thursday's Europa League and Europa Conference League predictions: Union battle to go Berlin's way

Best bets

Union Berlin
BT Sport 8, 8pm Thursday
1pt 11-8 Hills

J Frimpong to score at any time v Ferencvaros
BT Sport 10, 8pm Thursday
1pt 5-1 BoyleSports

Slovan Bratislava
BT Sport Digital, 5.45pm Thursday
1pt 31-20 bet365

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Thursday's Europa League and Europa Conference League preview

Bundesliga highflyers Union Berlin can win the Battle of the Unions in Brussels in the Europa League.

The German side missed a trick last week in the first leg of their round-of-16 clash with Union Saint-Gilloise when they were held to a 3-3 draw.

And there's no doubt that the Belgians are one of this season's surprise packages on the European stage.

But Union Berlin won there 1-0 when these sides met in the group stage of the competition and they can repeat the feat.

Remember, Union Saint-Gilloise are at home in so far as the game is in Belgium, but the tie is being played at the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium, home of Anderlecht.

And the hosts are also without classy frontman Yorbe Vertessen, scorer in the first leg but out through injury.

The Berlin outfit saw off Ajax in the last round – drawing 0-0 in Amsterdam – so have to fancy their chances of another successful Low Countries' raid.

Make it a Bundesliga double by backing rapidly improving Bayer Leverkusen to complete the double over Hungary's Ferencvaros.

Leverkusen won 2-0 at home last week and followed that up by coming from behind to win 3-2 at Werder Bremen with right wing-back Jeremie Frimpong scoring his seventh of the season, quite a return from that flank.

He's 5-1 to score at any time in Budapest against a Ferencvaros side who have won one of their last six and are reeling from a 2-1 home defeat at the weekend to Puskas, who played most of the second half with ten men.

In the Europa Conference League, Basel have had three goes at getting the better of Slovan Bratislava this season and failed every time which makes the Slovak heavyweights fair value at 31-20 to see off the Swiss in the second leg of their knockout tie.

Slovan won 2-0 in Switzerland in October and a week later they drew 3-3 in Bratislava. Vladimir Weiss's men went through as Group H winners with Basel chasing them home in second.

Basel saw off Trabzonspor in the playoff round – though they did lose the away leg in Turkey – before drawing 2-2 with Slovan last Thursday.

This is a tricky test for Basel, who are having a poor season and are currently outside the European places in Switzerland so need to be right for Sunday's trip to league leaders Young Boys.

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