As four Scottish clubs are on the European stage this evening, let’s take a look at each of the four ties.
Benfica v Hearts
After Hearts’ 6-0 aggregate defeat at the hands of Sturm Graz, the Edinburgh side have been handed possibly the trickiest tie of the round with a trip to Portugal to face European giants Benfica. The Portuguese side slumped to a 2-1 defeat at St Gallen before coming back to win 5-0 to get through, in order to face Hearts, who, as we know, dropped out of the Champions League. Hearts will most likely be in for a long night if they don’t improve defensively and will have to ensure they don’t concede early doors.
Benfica are yet to start their league season, but for Hearts, they started it on the wrong foot, losing 2-1 at Pittodrie against Aberdeen in a game which saw them ahead going into the dying moments.
If Hearts do see off Benfica, they will play the winner of Aarhus or Sabah, but defeat will see the Tynecastle outfit face either Rapid Wien or Paide Linnameeskond.
Jagiellonia v Rangers
The Gers make the trip to Poland as they kick off their European campaign. This is both sides’ first European tie this campaign, as Rangers and Derek McInnes eye up a Europa League spot this season. The Polish side were defeated 5-4 by Italian side Fiorentina in last season’s Conference League, whereas for Rangers, they failed to progress past the league phase of the Europa League. On paper, you’d fancy Rangers tonight, but the game this evening will be far from a breeze.
Jagiellonia have already played two games this campaign in the Polish league, winning two from two against both Korona and Motor Lublin, with Rangers, of course, drawing 1-1 at Tannadice last week.
If Rangers are to progress, they will face the winner of Larne or Iberia Tbilisi, but should the Gers suffer defeat, they will meet either FC RFS or FK Jablonec.
HJK Helsinki v Motherwell
The Steelmen are in Europe with a trip to Finland in store. HJK are rather well known on the big stage despite being knocked out of last season’s European campaign with a rather surprising defeat to Bulgarian side Arda Kardzhali on penalties. This is Motherwell’s first season in Europe since 2022, which saw the Steelmen stunned by Sligo Rovers after a 3-0 aggregate defeat. HJK Helsinki came up against fellow Scottish side Aberdeen in 2023, with both meetings ending in draws, in a group that also included PAOK and Frankfurt.
The hosts eased past Northern Irish side Coleraine 8-0 on aggregate in the last round, with Motherwell getting past Faroese side HB Tórshavn 5-0 on aggregate, setting up a tasty meeting in Finland. Helsinki have already played 18 games in their league season, as the Finnish side sit fourth with 8 wins, 4 draws, and 6 defeats. For Motherwell, they defeated Hibernian 2-1 in the capital on opening day on Sunday as the Steelmen continue to impress.
Should Motherwell progress, they will meet last season’s Europa League finalists, Freiburg.
Hibernian v KF Shkëndija
The Hibees are back after starting their European campaign in horror with a shock 2-0 defeat away to Malisheva, but made up for it in the second leg with a 4-1 victory at Easter Road. North Macedonian side KF Shkëndija are in town, having defeated Europa FC 6-0 over the course of two legs, as well as defeating NK Bravo in the latest round, to earn them the tie in Leith.
The visitors have also met fellow Scottish side Aberdeen before, back in 2015, where the Dons were held to a goalless draw in the Granite City, but Aberdeen drew 1-1 away from home as they progressed via the away goals rule, which, of course, no longer exists.
Hibs started their season off on the wrong foot, with a 2-1 defeat against Motherwell, but for the visitors, they began their league season with three points, defeating FK Skopje 3-0 on the opening day.
Should David Gray’s men progress, they will meet the winner of IFK Göteborg or KAA Gent in the Play-Off Round.