The League Path of the 2019/20 Champions League is where the teams who failed to win their domestic league but finished high enough to qualify for the Champions League enter the competition.
This means we can see some well-known clubs from around Europe exiting at this early stage. A good example was the elimination of PSV Eindhoven in the previous round and they were dumped out of the tournament by FC Basel. The Swiss have now been drawn to play LASK Linz of Austria in the third qualifying round, with the first leg taking place at St. Jakob-Park, Switzerland.
FC Basel entered the Champions League in the second qualifying round and could not have asked for a much tougher task than facing PSV Eindhoven. They lost 3-2 away from home but the away goals proved crucial as they won the home leg 2-1 to go through on the away goals rule.
The Swiss league is underway this season and FC Basel have 6 points from three games. They have won two and lost one but recorded a 3-2 win at Thun on the weekend to remain within a point of Young Boys at the top of the table.
Trends show FC Basel have enjoyed some good wins at home in the Champions League with victories over Benfica, Manchester United and PSV in the past two years. On their day, FC Basel can be a match for any team.
LASK Linz finished second in the 2018/19 Austrian Football Bundesliga behind FC Salzburg. They were 12 points off the pace but by finishing second they have a crack at reaching the group stages of the Champions League.
The Austrian club have entered the qualifying process at this stage of the competition so have yet to play a European match this season. However, they have played two domestic league games, winning both including an excellent 3-0 away win at Austria Wien on the weekend.
However, this is set to be a much tougher test for LASK Linz and they will be playing in their first Champions League tie since 1965/66 when they lost 5-2 on aggregate in the preliminary round to Gornik Zabrze of Poland. This is going to be a step up for LASK Linz and it will be interesting to see how they cope.
Looking ahead to the team news and FC Basel are likely to go with the same team which beat PSV Eindhoven. That means a place up-front for Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Fabien Frei in midfield.
LASK Linz will be looking toward Ghanaian striker Samuel Tetteh to sore the crucial away goal. However, expect them to line up in a defensive formation, with one man up-front.
This could prove a difficult night for LASK Linz. FC Basel can very good at home in the Champions League and if they hit their stride, this could be a comfortable home win with a clean sheet.
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