The first leg of the 2025/26 Conference League play-off tie between Shkendija Tetovo (North Macedonia) and Samsunspor (Turkey) will take place on 19 February at the Tose Proeski Stadium in Skopje. Shkendija Tetovo vs Samsunspor: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Shkendija Tetovo
Shkendija Tetovo finished 22nd in the league phase. The team picked up seven points (two wins, one draw) — all of them at home. On the road, Jeton Bekiri's side suffered three goalless defeats. In terms of goalscoring, the club look modest overall: they have scored only four goals, and even eight teams that have already been eliminated recorded a better figure. It is also worth adding that the home side have reached the Conference League knockouts for the first time in the club's history.
- No more than two goals were scored in Shkendija Tetovo's previous six Conference League matches.
- On home soil, the team have avoided defeat in seven of their last eight matches in this competition (five wins, two draws).
- In five of their previous six home games in the Conference League, the club scored exactly once.
Potential Shkendija Tetovo Lineup (3-4-3)*
Baboucarr Gaye – Aleksandar Trumci, Ronaldo Webster, Anes Melici – Arbin Zejnullai, Liridon Latifi, Adamu Alhassan, Drilon Islami – Reshat Ramadani, Besart Ibraimi, Fabrice Tamba.
Defender Aleksandar Trumci and midfielder Liridon Latifi are suspended.
Samsunspor
Samsunspor made an excellent start to the league phase, recording three clean-sheet wins. However, after passing the halfway point, the team collected only one point. In that spell, they conceded at least twice in every match. Even so, Samsunspor managed to finish 13th, and with 10 goals scored, the club ranked in the top three among all play-off teams. Like their upcoming opponents, the Turkish side have reached the European knockout stage for the first time.
At the beginning of the week, the team appointed Thorsten Fink as head coach, having previously managed Genk.
- At least three goals were scored in four of Samsunspor's last five Conference League matches.
- The team have avoided defeat in five of their previous seven European matches (three wins, two draws).
- The club scored in five of their last six Conference League games.
Potential Samsunspor Lineup (4-5-1)*
Irfan Can Egribayat – Rick van Drongelen, Lubomir Satka, Yosafat Mendes, Soner Gonul – Yalcin Kayan, Carlo Holse, Olivier Ntcham, Celil Yuksel, Serife Ndiaye – Marius.
Midfielder Afonso Souza and forward Tanguy Coulibaly will miss out through injury.
Referee
Rohit Saggi (Norway)
Matches – 7 (international fixtures, 2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 20;
Average yellow cards per match – 2.9;
Red cards shown – 1;
Fouls per match on average – 27;
Penalties – 14%.
Shkendija Tetovo vs Samsunspor: Match Prediction
Very surprisingly, the Turkish club parted company with Thomas Reis, whose name was closely linked with Samsunspor's recent successes. We do not think that Thorsten Fink, who has taken charge only in the last few days, will rush into a radical overhaul. We are confident the new coach will have the return leg in mind, so the visitors' main priority in the upcoming match will be to avoid conceding. The Turkish side showed at the start of the league phase that they can defend well.
At the same time, Shkendija Tetovo's attack does not pose an insurmountable problem for opposition defences. In half of the matches in the league phase, the home team failed to score, and on home soil the club did not score more than once in five of their last six Conference League games. However, Jeton Bekiri's side have themselves conceded a maximum of one goal in five consecutive matches in this competition.
Prediction: Under 2.5 goals
* For each team, the starting XI listed is from their last match in this competition.
