Who are St Patricks Athletics’ Europa Conference League qualifier opponents F91 Dudelange?
F91 Dudelange lost to Bohemians at the Aviva Stadium in August 2021 Credit: Dolf Hartog (ETPhotos)
St Patricks Athletic play F91 Dudelange from Luxembourg in the first qualifying round of the Europa Conference League at the Stade Jos Nosbaum on Wednesday 12th July with a 6.30pm kick off (Irish time).
So who are F91 Dudelange?
F91 Dudelange is a club based in the Dudelange region of Luxembourg and they play in the Luxembourg National Division, the top tier in that country. (French is the main communication language in Luxembourg and the local spelling of the club’s name is Diddeleng)
The club is relatively new, only being formed in 1991, as a result of a merger between three smaller clubs in the Dudelange region.
The current Dudelange squad has a very multinational feel to it with no less than 11 different nationalities represented in their 26-man squad.
Who is their manager?
The club is managed by former Portuguese footballer, Carlos Fangueiro, and he has been in charge since 2020.
The 46-year-old was a well-travelled footballer in his day, working his way through 13 clubs including spells in English football with Millwall and Walsall in the mid noughties.
Where do they play?
The club plays its home game in the Stade Jos Nosbaum, which is in southern Luxembourg close to the French border.
The ground has a very modest 2,558 capacity and has a covered seated stand on one side of the pitch and an uncovered seated stand on the opposite side of the pitch.
The average home attendance for their National Division league matches is 473 patrons.
What European pedigree do Dudelange have?
Dudelange have a very impressive European pedigree having racked up 81 appearances across all competitions in their relatively short history.
They have competed in the Europa League group stages (in 2018 and 2019).
They were pitted against the might of AC Milan in the Europa League back in 2018 and on that occasion had to move the game to the higher capacity National Stadium when 7,983 fans attended the game. They lost the 5-2 in Milan but restricted the Italians to a 1-0 win in Luxembourg.
In the Europa Conference League in the 2020/21 season where their second qualifying round opponents were League of Ireland side Bohemians.
Bohs won the first leg in Luxembourg on a 1-0 scoreline, Ross Tierney netting their goal and they then had a comprehensive 3-1 win at home with Rob Cornwall and Georgie Kelly (2) on the scoresheet.
Close followers of the LOI scene will also recall Dudelange’s earlier visit to Ireland when they were drawn against UCD in the first qualifying round of the Europa League in 2015/16.
The college team drew 2-2 with Dudelange on aggregate but went through to the next round on the away goals rule.
How did they fare last season?
They reached the quarter final of the Luxembourg Cup where they were beaten 3-2 by Victoria Rosport.
They played a total of three games in Europe last season, scoring eight goals but conceding 13 across three different competitions.
As Luxembourg champions they entered the Champions League in the first qualifying round where they beat Tirana from Albania 3-1 on aggregate before losing in the second qualifying round to Armenian side Pyunik on a 4-2 score line.
They then entered the Europa League at the third round qualifier stage when they exited on a 5-2 score against Malmo from Sweden.
Their participation in the play-off stages of the Europa Conference League was later ended by Polish side Lech Poznan who beat them 3-1 on aggregate.
What has been their route to Europe?
Dudelange qualified for the Europa Qualifying League by finishing third in their domestic league last season.
They played a total of 30 games in the 15-team league and amassed 67 points, ten adrift of title winners Swift Hesperange.
Who to watch out for?
Samir Hadji is one of Dudelange’s main strikers and has accumulated 254 senior appearances with a variety of clubs in France, Germany and Luxembourg.
French born but with a Moroccan father, Hadji joined Dudelange in 2021 and has gone on to rack up 56 appearances and 32 goals for them.
His father, Mustapha Hadji, was a full Moroccan international and Samir went on to make one appearance for their U- 23 team back in 2011.
He is now 33 years of age but with a wealth of experience behind him he is still one of the main goal scoring threats that will cause problems for St Patricks Athletic when they meet in Luxembourg next week.
What are Dudelangs’s recent results?
The National League in Luxembourg, also known as the BGL Ligue, runs from August 2023 until May 2024 so this is now the off season for Dudelange.
When will the second leg of the tie be played?
The second leg will be played at the Richmond Park Inchicore on Thursday 20th July with a 7.45 pm kick off.
Who will the winners play in the next round?
The winners of this first qualifying round tie will then be paired with the winners of the Glentoran (Northern Ireland) versus FC Griza (Malta) tie in the second qualifying round.
Who do the losers play?
The losers go home as there is no back door route out of the Europa Conference League qualifiers.
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