Bodø/Glimt meet Ajax at Aspmyra Stadion in the second leg of their Knockout Play-Off in 2023-24 UEFA Europa Conference League.
With the tie locked at 2-2 after the first leg, victory would see either Bodø/Glimt or Ajax advance to the Round of 16, although a draw would see the match go to extra time and potentially penalties.
Team News
Odin Bjortuft is suspended for Bodø/Glimt after he was sent off in the first leg.
Sondre Brunstad Fet, Jostein Gundersen and Albert Gronbaek are doubts for selection after picking up injuries in the first leg.
Nikita Haikin (shoulder), Syver Skeide (knee) and Runar Espejord (hamstring) remain absent.
Ajax hav no fresh injury concerns to report after their Eredivisie draw against NEC Nijmegen.
Steven Bergwijn (hamstring), Mika Godts (thigh), Remko Pasveer and Gaston Avila (all knee) remain ruled out.
When is Kick-Off?
Bodø/Glimt host Ajax at Aspmyr Stadion at 6:45pm CET on Thursday 15 February, live on TNT Sports 7 in the UK.
Stat Attack
- Bodø/Glimt drew 2-2 in their only previous meeting against Ajax, which came in the first leg of this tie in Amsterdam.
- Ajax are visiting Bodø/Glimt at Aspmyr Stadion for the very first time in a competitive fixture.
- Each of Bodø/Glimt’s two previous home meetings against Dutch opposition ended in a 2-1 result, as they beat AZ Alkmaar in March 2022 then lost to PSV in November of that year.
- Bodø/Glimt have conceded in each of their last four home matches in all UEFA competitions (W3, L1).
- Chuba Akpom has scored three goals in two of his last three appearances for Ajax in all competitions.
Prediction
Having had a week to recuperate and refocus after their late defensive meltdown from 2-0 up in the first th leg to eventually draw 2-2, Bodø/Glimt now need to play with the same clinical quality which initially put them on course for a shock result and avoid any defensive silliness.
Ajax meanwhile should be buoyed to have somehow snatched a first leg draw and will surely look to complete the comeback here, but they must be more clinical than they were at home because they seemed to lack the ruthless edge that Bodø/Glimt had despite their dominance.
This clash therefore should be another cracker but given that Bodø/Glimt have lost just three European matches at home in the last three seasons, I do feel like Ajax will have to score first otherwise they could become a big name casualty.
Prediction: Bodø/Glimt 2-1 Ajax
Result: Bodø/Glimt 1-2 (AET) Ajax (Ajax win 4-3 on aggregate)