On Wednesday 29 July at 4.30 pm, FC Lugano will face KF Dukagjini at the Kampi Nacional Hajvali in Pristina in the second leg of the second qualifying round (Q2) of the UEFA Conference League.
At stake is a place in Q3. The bianconeri go into the match on the back of a 1–0 win at the AIL Arena thanks to Renato Steffen’s goal – a valuable but narrow lead that leaves the tie wide open.
A ONE-GOAL LEAD
The result of the first leg does not fully reflect FC Lugano’s performance, as they created numerous chances to extend their lead: two goals disallowed for offside, two saves off the line and Moncada hitting the crossbar.
Dukagjini, however, proved they can be dangerous on the counter-attack. Stevenson hit the post in the second half, whilst in the closing stages von Ballmoos was called upon to save a long-range effort from Pefqeli. These incidents underline the need to approach the second leg with caution, without taking qualification for granted.
Mattia Croci-Torti, too, emphasised after the first leg just how narrow the margin remains: “We created too many chances to be satisfied with a 1–0 win, but all these matches harbour many pitfalls. Even if we’d won 3–0, I wouldn’t have felt confident: European matches are tough, especially away from home.”
THREE MATCHES IN SIX DAYS
The two teams go into the fixture having followed different paths. The Kosovar league is due to start on 15 August, so Dukagjini have been able to focus their pre-season preparations entirely on this double-header in Europe.
FC Lugano, on the other hand, are back in action for the third time in six days. Following their victory in the first leg, the bianconeri beat FC Vaduz 2–1 on Sunday in the opening round of the Brack Super League, with Croci-Torti confirming that he had rotated the starting line-up to spread the workload and responsibilities across the squad: “I wanted to rotate the squad to send a message that everyone is important. When there are so many matches, the manager must be the first to show that he has faith in everyone,” explained the manager after the league match. The record from the first two official matches shows two wins, accompanied by the realisation that the team needs to be more clinical in seeing out matches.
THE KAMPI NACIONAL HAJVALI
The match is being played at the Kampi Nacional Hajvali, the Kosovo Football Federation’s training centre located on the outskirts of Pristina. The stadium is already operational, but forms part of a complex that is still being expanded and completed. The project involves transforming the main stadium into a UEFA Category 4 venue with a capacity of around 14,000, which will in future also host matches for the Kosovo senior national team.
This is where qualification for the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League will be decided. FC Lugano go into the match with a one-goal lead from the first leg at the AIL Arena, though they are well aware that half the work still lies ahead. They will need composure, balance and determination to defend the lead they built up in the first leg and continue their European campaign.
MATTIA CROCI-TORTI’S PRE-MATCH INTERVIEW: