- BATE Borisov are winless in 4 home games across all competitions, drawing 2 and losing 2.
- Af Elbasani's last 5 games across all competitions have featured 2 wins, 1 draw and 2 defeats.
- BATE Borisov have scored 1 goal in UEFA Conference League Qualification 2026, Af Elbasani 1.
Draw is on the cards in Belarus
The odds of 2.1 on the visiting Af Elbasani look a little high for a team who are coming into the return leg level after a 1-1 draw in the first leg of this UEFA Conference League Qualification 2026 tie. BATE are 3.0 and the draw at 3.6, so the market is not expecting the hosts to have much say in this second instalment.
However, we know from the first meeting that this could be a cagey affair and are taking the draw at odds on as our main selection for Thursday's game at Borisov Arena. BATE boss Vitali Rogozhkin, who has been at the helm since 15 May 2026, has fashioned his team into a compact, disciplined 3-1-4-2 system that relies on structure, compact spacing and counter punches.
That sort of setup, which can be very effective against teams that like to attack, could really be in trouble against Ivan Gvozdenovic's 4-2-3-1, which is more orthodox but will rely on vertical transitions, wing switches and quick combinations.
Af Elbasani will fancy themselves to nick it
Gvozdenovic has been in charge of the Albanian outfit since 5 December 2024, so we shouldn't expect any radical changes from the visitors. They come into this one off the back of a 3-0 home win over Dinamo Tirana in Kategoria Superiore 2025 and a 1-2 away victory at KS Vllaznia Shkoder in the same league before the 1-1 away draw with BATE in the previous round of this competition.
Their last 5 games, therefore, include 2 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses, while over the last 10 matches the numbers have been 5 wins, 1 draw and 4 defeats. BATE's last 5 have been 2 draws and 3 losses, while their last 10 read just 1 win, 6 draws and 3 defeats - a record that screams stubborn but blunt.
Maksim Sakuta has been on fire for BATE, scoring 2 of their 3 goals in the last 5 across all competitions, but Elbasani's main threat is Ardit Nikaj, who has 1 goal in this competition. With 2 away wins and 3 away defeats in 5 matches across all competitions, Elbasani average 1.60 goals per road game, having scored 8 on the road this season.
A 0-1 defeat at home to FC Gomel in the Vysshaya Liga 2026 and a 1-1 draw away to Af Elbasani in the UEFA Conference League Qualification 2026 mean BATE are in poor form and that could be a worry for the hosts in this game. Their away record in recent times shows this tie should not be a foregone conclusion, so with the teams level after the 1st Leg, we're taking the away side to edge this one.
