Thursday's Europa League and Conference League qualifying predictions and free football tips

When to bet

Kick-offs from 4pm Thursday

Cercle Brugge vs Kilmarnock
SolidSport, Thursday 7pm

St Mirren vs Valur
BBC Scotland & BBC iPlayer, Thursday 7.45pm

Best bets

Both teams to score in Cercle Brugge vs Kilmarnock
1pt 4-5 bet365

St Mirren
1pt 19-20 bet365

Thursday's Europa League & Conference League qualifying predictions

There are two Scottish teams in European action on Thursday night and both ties are delicately balanced going into their second legs.

Kilmarnock secured a 1-1 draw with Cercle Brugge in the home game of their Europa League qualifier but now face a tough challenge in the return clash in Belgium.

Derek McInnes’s men have typically been better at Rugby Park than on the road and picked up ten of their 14 wins in the Scottish Premiership last season on their own artificial pitch.

Cercle Brugge’s manager made his displeasure with that surface clear and he had more reasons to be unhappy at the weekend as his side were beaten 3-0 in the league by Westerlo.

The home side are odds-on to secure the victory but on the basis of their recent performances that price makes little appeal.

Both teams had their fair share of chances during the first game and given the nature of the tie, if one team takes the lead in Bruges, the other will have to force the issue.

That means backing both teams to score could be the best bet in what looks set to be an intriguing affair.

St Mirren secured a goalless draw with Icelandic side Valur in the first leg of their Conference League qualifier but should be able to progress with a win in the home game.

The visitors will be without Aron Johannsson who was sent off in the first leg, and former Everton man Gylfi Sigurdsson, who is injured.

Valur have lost eight of their last nine away games in Europe and may come up short once again against the Saints, who dominated the first leg and can move on to the next round with a win in Paisley.

Elsewhere, Irish side St Patrick’s Athletic take a 3-1 first leg lead to Liechtenstein where they face Vaduz in the second leg of their Conference League qualifier.  

Fellow League of Ireland side Shelbourne have a three-goal deficit to overcome when they welcome FC Zurich to Tolka Park while Welsh team Caernarfon Town will be playing for pride after losing their first leg 6-0 to Legia Warsaw.

Click for free bets and betting offers from the Racing Post

Commercial notice: This article contains affiliate links. Offers are handpicked and come from operators our experts have first-hand experience of. Opening an account via one of these links will earn revenue for the Racing Post, which will be used to continue producing our award-winning coverage of horseracing and sports betting.