Tonight s UEFA Europa League matches: Samsunspor returns after 27 years

The first leg of the UEFA Europa League play-off round kicks off on Thursday, August 21, with Turkish club Samsunspor traveling to Greece to face Panathinaikos at 9:00 PM local time. The match will be broadcast live on HT Spor. The highly anticipated fixture will be officiated by Spanish referee Juan Martinez Munuera, with fellow countrymen Diego Barbero and Miguel Martinez serving as assistants. Mateo Busquets Ferrer will be the fourth official. The return legs for all play-off matches are scheduled for August 27 and 28.

Back on the European stage after a long wait

This match marks Samsunspor's return to a major European competition for the first time in 27 years. The club's international journey began in the 1987-88 Balkan Cup. They went on to win the same cup in the 1993-94 season and made their UEFA debut in the Intertoto Cup in 1997-98.

Samsunspor also participated in the Intertoto Cup in the 1998-99 season. In their two seasons in the competition, the team played a total of 10 matches, winning six and losing four, while scoring 22 goals and conceding 13.

Now, after a long hiatus, the "Red and Whites" are back on the European stage, ready to take on Panathinaikos in the UEFA Europa League play-off round.

Team news and roster updates

Samsunspor will be without their new Portuguese star, Afonso Sousa, for the match. Due to UEFA rules, Sousa is ineligible to play as he already appeared in a Champions League qualifying match with his previous club, Lech Poznan.

However, other new signings like Toni Borevkovic and goalkeeper Albert Posiadala are available to play if the technical staff chooses to use them. The status of Carlo Holse and Emre Kılınç, who were injured in a recent match against Kocaelispor, remains uncertain. The team is also monitoring the fitness of Anthony Musaba, who has been out for two weeks with an injury he sustained in pre-season. His availability will be a game-time decision.

Strong start to Süper Lig

Samsunspor is coming into this match with strong momentum from their domestic league. The team has had a perfect start to the Super Lig season, winning both of their opening matches. They started with a 2-1 home victory against Gençlerbirliği, with goals from Marius Mouandilmadji and Carlo Holse. They followed that up with a 1-0 away win against newly promoted Kocaelispor, thanks to a goal from Van Drongelen.

Tonight's UEFA Europa League games

Here is the schedule for the first leg of the Europa League play-off round. Matches are listed by Turkish time (GMT+03:00):

19:30: Midtjylland (Denmark) vs. KuPS Kuopio (Finland)20:00: Malmö (Sweden) vs. Sigma Olomouc (Czech Republic)20:00: Brann (Norway) vs. AEK Larnaca (Cyprus)21:00: Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel) vs. Dynamo Kyiv (Ukraine)21:00: Shkendija (North Macedonia) vs. Ludogorets (Bulgaria)21:00: Panathinaikos (Greece) vs. Samsunspor (Türkiye)21:00: Zrinjski (Bosnia and Herzegovina) vs. Utrecht (Netherlands)21:15: Slovan Bratislava (Slovakia) vs. Young Boys (Switzerland)21:30: Lech Poznan (Poland) vs. Genk (Belgium)21:45: Aberdeen (Scotland) vs. FCSB (Romania)21:45: Rijeka (Croatia) vs. PAOK (Greece)22:00: Lincoln Red Imps (Gibraltar) vs. Braga (Portugal)