Feyenoord vs Fenerbahce: Tips, Odds, and Match Preview

Feyenoord faces Fenerbahce in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the upcoming UEFA Champions League. The winner here is looking at the prospect of playing for the coveted spot in the 2025/26 elite competition, against whoever comes on top in the Nice vs Benfica matchup.

Van Persie Season Opener

Feyenoord struck gold with the mid-season decision to hand the keys to Robin Van Persie. On his return to his boyhood club as head coach, the ex-Arsenal and Man Utd striker led his men to third in the Dutch top flight and the last 16 round of the Champions League, sending AC Milan home in the process. The Rotterdam side was stopped by the finalists, Inter.

The preseason friendlies were a mixed bag. Until the last warm-up game, that is, which saw Van Persie's men lead Wolfsburg 4:0 before the game was called off due to a medical emergency with one of the supporters. But it was pretty much done and dusted by then.

Feyenoord Injury & Suspension News

Goalkeeper Justin Bijlow is confirmed unfit for the first leg, lending his place between the posts to Timon Wellenreuther. The skipper Quinten Timber is back in action after injury kept him out in the later stages of the last season.

Season Semis for Fenerbahce

Jose Mourinho felt the urgency of the Bridge, Bernabeu, Old Trafford, and Stadio Olimpico, but the pressure mounting on him to win the silverware at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium arguably tops them all. Arriving with high ambition and even higher expectations, the Portuguese manager failed to win anything in his first year in Turkey, crashing out of the UCL qualifications at this very stage and finishing a distant second to Galatasaray in the league.

If the preseason friendlies are anything to go by, Mourinho's men are up for the challenge. They've won four and lost one. Lazio 1:0 was their final test before the, it's safe to say, season semi-final double header against the Dutch opposition, with whom they've played twice in the 2002/03 qualifying round for the Europa League and lost both legs.

Fenerbahce Injury & Suspension News

Rodrigo Becao, who suffered an ACL injury last term, remains sidelined, as do Mert Hakan Yandas and Anderson Talisca. All eyes will be on the fresh blood, John Duran, Archie Brown, and Nelson Semedo, who are likely to start.

Feyenoord vs Fenerbahce Prediction

Mourinho is under more pressure to perform than Van Persie, but that won’t change his usual first-leg-away approach. The Portuguese manager is way more battle-hardened than his Dutch colleague and I expect a tight game come Wednesday.

I'm referring to managers here, because there's very little separating the teams at this point in the season. The additions to the squads are unknown qualities, and preseason friendlies do not count for form.

With that in mind, under 3 goals looks likely from this distance.

CryptoGamba tip: Under 3 goals – 1.71 @Ybets