In the Round of 16 of the Conference League on February 26, 2026, the return match between Samsunspor and Shkëndija-79 will take place. The visitors will need to try to get an away revenge.
The Turkish side, who recently earned promotion to the Super Lig, sensationally finished third last season. However, they have had quite a few setbacks domestically this year, and their chances of breaking into the top five are dwindling. The Macedonian team reclaimed the championship title in 2025—the previous one had been four seasons earlier. They do not want to wait that long again, but Vardar is gradually pulling away in the domestic league, and Struga looks at least just as strong.
Thomas Rice’s side started in the Europa League this summer but failed to make much progress there. The more experienced Panathinaikos scored one more goal to knock them out. Moving to the Conference League, they began with three straight wins. However, their form dropped off dramatically afterward: after drawing with Breidablik, they lost to both AEK and Mainz.
The representative of North Macedonia started in the Champions League and managed not only to get past The New Saints but also the experienced FCSB. However, they then lost to Qarabag (who eventually made it to the February playoffs!). In the Europa League, after defeating Ludogorets, they were heavily beaten in Bulgaria. Even in the current tournament, their performance has not impressed: only two wins and seven points, all collected at home. They played there again last week. Then, the only goal of the match was scored by the Turks near the end—Muandilmadji found the net shortly after coming on.
Samsunspor vs Shkëndija-79: Key Stats and Trends
Samsunspor have lost twice in their last three matches
The club scores an average of 1.57 goals and concedes 0.86
Shkëndija-79 have lost five consecutive away matches in European competitions
The team scores an average of 0.57 goals per game and concedes 0.86
Samsunspor vs Shkëndija-79: Probable Starting Line-ups
Samsunspor (probable line-up): Kocuk – Thomasson, van Drongelen, Satka, Yavru – Ntcham, Makumbu, Mendes, Assomu, Holse – Ndiaye
Shkëndija-79 (probable line-up): Gej – Webster, Melichi, Fetai, Murati – Alhassan, Ramadani, Spahiu, Zeynulai, Tamba – Ibraimi
Previous matches: Samsunspor vs Shkëndija-79
Just last week, the clubs played each other for the first time.
