UEL Preview: OL Travels to Germany; Nice Host Twente

OGC Nice and Olympique Lyonnais will look for victories on Thursday when the two Ligue 1 sides aim to bolster their chances of qualifying directly to the UEFA Europa League knockout stage.

OGC Nice vs. Twente

Les Aiglons have to start turning their Europa League situation around as they have not secured a win in their first three matchdays, having drawn against Real Sociedad and lost to Lazio and Ferencvárosi TC.

Facing Twente will be challenging as the Dutch side is fifth in the Eredivisie, but they have also struggled in this competition. Twente has drawn against Manchester United and Fenerbahçe SK while losing to Lazio.

Nice will have the advantage with the match being at the Allianz Riviera, but it should be a tightly contested match with the two sides needing the three points. Manager Franck Haise stated the mindset they have to end this winless streak in the Europa League.

"We hope for our first European win of the season... This is one of the matches where we have to aim for a win. Nothing will be decided if we win or if we lose. But we all hope to secure our first European victory of the season."

"When we’re playing every three days, as we are now, it’s all about training, matches, video review, preparation, and travel. The most important thing is us. We only have big matches. So, we need to be ready every three days, regardless of the competition. In fact, on Sunday, we follow up with Lille, who are excelling in the Champions League."

Olympique Lyonnais vs. TSG 1899 Hoffenheim

Lyon will travel to PreZero Arena as they look for a road win to elevate themselves into the top eight and automatically qualify for the Round of 16. OL opened up the competition by winning over Rangers FC and Olympiacos F.C., but they stumbled and lost to Beşiktaş J.K.

As for Hoffenheim, they drew against FC Midtjylland, defeated FC Dynamo Kyiv, and lost to FC Porto, so the German side will attempt to get back in the win column.

Ahead of the matchup against Hoffenheim, OL manager Pierre Sage spoke to the media and noted that he wants his squad to bounce back after three straight winless matches across all competitions (one loss and two draws).

"We have a debt to settle from the previous matches. We want to win to approach Sunday’s derby with a clear mind. The challenge is to motivate the players for these two upcoming games, connecting them while also distinguishing between them."

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