2026-2027 Champions League: Fenerbahçe vs. Sturm Graz, Probable Lineups

Istanbul’s “Sukru Saracoglu” Stadium will host, at 8:00 p.m. Italian time on Wednesday, August 5, the first leg of the third qualifying round of the Champions League between host Fenerbahçe and the Austrian team Sturm Graz, in the so-called “Seeded Path” of the qualifying phase that will lead seven teams to the League Phase, set to begin on September 8.

Fenerbahçe, led by head coach Ismail Kartal, advanced from the previous round against Gornik Zabrze, though not without difficulty: in the first leg, they won 1-0 thanks to a goal by Talisca in the 37th minute, while in the second leg, they took the lead in the 12th minute with a penalty kick by the same Brazilian but were pegged back to 1-1 in the lengthy stoppage time of the first half, thanks to a goal by Sacek. There was great tension in the closing minutes (six of the nine yellow cards were issued from the 66th minute onward), but they secured qualification, albeit by the narrowest of margins.

Sturm Graz’s second round, against the Scottish runners-up Hearts, was much easier: the decisive 4-0 victory in the first leg in Austria, with goals by Gorenc Stankovic, Mitchell, Weinhandl, and Heil, decided the tie, but even beyond the Hadrian’s Wall, the team coached by Fabio Ingolitsch had a fairly easy time of it, winning 2-0 thanks to goals by Seidl and Soglo. Their opponent in the final playoff has already been determined: the winner of the Fenerbahçe vs. Sturm Graz match will face the winner of the Sparta Prague vs. Lyon match.

Probable lineups

FENERBAHÇE (4-2-3-1): Gunok; Semedo, Skriniar, Ake, Oosterwolde; Guendouzi, Fred; Kahveci, Asensio, Akturkoglu; Talisca. Coach: Kartal.

STURM GRAZ (4-4-2): Khudyakov; Heil, Vallci, Mitchell, Soglo; Seidl, Weinhandl, Stankovic, Hodl; Wlodarczyk, Jatta. Coach: Ingolitsch.