Viktoria Plzeň up close | OneFootball

A three-man backline, third-place finishers in the league and head coach Miroslav Koubek in his third spell in charge: all good things come in threes for Eintracht’s first Europa League opponents in 2024/25.

The opposition

FC Viktoria Plzeň, founded in 1911, play their fixtures in the Czech league at the Doosan Aréna, which has a capacity of 11,700 and is decked out in the club colours of red and blue.

They have won the domestic league title six times (2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2022) and the cup on two occasions (1971, 2010).

The club is currently competing on the European stage for a third consecutive year and sits in third in the Chance Liga on 17 points.

The coach

Experienced tactician Miroslav Koubek has been in the dugout since 1 July 2023 in what is his third stint at the club. During his playing days, the now 73-year-old won the Czech league and cup double in 1980 with Sparta Prague. He has been a coach for approximately 40 years.

In 2015 he led Plzeň to the league title and, incidentally, guided 1. FC Amberg into the regional Bavarian league in Germany in 1994.

Tactics

Koubek tends to send his team out in a 3-4-3 or a 3-5-2 formation. Sampson Dweh, Svetozar Markovic and Václav Jemelka usually comprise the back three, with Lukáš Cerv, Lukáš Kalvach, Jan Kopic and either Milan Havel or Cadu in midfield. Pavel Sulc operates in attacking midfield, while Prince Adu, Erik Jirka and Matěj Vydra are the dangermen up top.

Form

Koubek’s side have had mixed results over their last three league games. A 1-1 draw with Slovan Liberec was followed by a 2-1 win against Sigma Olomouc and then a 3-0 reverse versus Slavia Prague. Their ball possession statistics varied between 45 and 60 percent in those games. Cadu, Kalvach and goalkeeper Marian Tvrdon each recorded two assists.

Path to the league phase

Plzeň qualified for the Europa League play-offs by virtue of a third-place finish in the Czech league in 2023/24. They overcame Ukrainian outfit Kryvbas Kryvyj Rih (2-1, 1-0) and Scottish side Heart of Midlothian (1-0, 1-0) to get to this stage.

Absentees

Jan Sykora, Christophe Kabongo and Rafiu Durosinmi will all be missing through injury against Eintracht on Thursday. Facts and figures

Plzeň have reached the UEFA Champions League group stage on four occasions but have never progressed to the knockout rounds.

They have earned one win, three draws and nine defeats across their last 13 European away games. Their solitary victory came in December 2017 in a 2-0 success against Hapoel Be’er Sheva in the group stage.