Malmoe – Union Berlin

Malmoe will have a tough time at home against Union Berlin

The third leg in Group D of the Europa League will see a clash between two different in status, but similarly placed teams. Union Berlin were regarded by bookmakers as one of the top 10 favourites in the current tournament. Malmoe did not walk away as favourites in the Europa League in general, or in the D quartet in particular. That said, both opponents lost all of their fixtures in the two rounds played and the upcoming head-to-head encounters will determine the team that keeps their chances of continuing their fight for play-off places with Braga and Union Saint-Gillois. The German league leader is determined to be the favourite for the upcoming match with odds of around two to win. Malmoe were last year's champions of Sweden by a good margin. This season the team is playing much worse and by October they had time to change the head coach. At the moment in the Allsvenskan, the Sky Blue are in fourth place and are fighting solely for a place in the European competitions next season. Malmö's results throughout 2022 can be described as unstable. It was the lack of effective organisation that led to the Swedish champion's exit from Champions League qualification at the hands of modest Dudelange. Malmoe lost their opening group stage games in the Europa League to Braga and Union Saint-Gillois by a combined score of 2-5. Union Berlin approach the third leg as the current German league leaders. Since August, the German club from the capital city has had many successful duels against strong opponents. In games against Bayern and Leipzig, for example, the Berlin side amassed a combined total of four points. At the same time, the high level of play under Fischer has not yet paid dividends in the Europa League, where the team suffered two defeats by the same score of 0-1. It is unlikely that the German club's plans include a Europa League defeat with an emphasis on Bundesliga appearances, so the visitors should be as fit as possible. Whichever squad Union Berlin travel to Sweden, they show a higher level of play than their opponents. Malmoe do not look like a top team at the moment, even in not the strongest national championship, so they can hardly compete with a stronger opponent.