Fighting for a spot in the Europa League‘s round of 16, Belgian side Genk will welcome Croatian giants Dinamo Zagreb to Cegeka Arena on Thursday for the second leg of their knockout playoff.
Racing are in the driver’s seat after winning 3-1 in the first leg, and the Blues will be hoping to cause an upset in midweek.
Match preview
Nicky Hayen‘s Genk finished strongly in the league phase and come into this clash in good form overall, though they were downed 3-0 by Standard Liege on Sunday.
That disappointing defeat against their Belgian Pro League rivals meant that Racing missed out on the chance to climb into the division’s top six, and to make matters worse, starboy Konstantinos Karetsas was forced off with a concussion late on.
However, it was also a first loss in eight matches for Hayen’s men, and came at the end of a commendable five-game winning streak across all competitions that included their first-leg victory.
In last Thursday’s clash, Genk raced into an early two-goal lead courtesy of efforts from midfielder Bryan Heynen and right-back Zakaria El Ouahdi.
Dinamo were able to pull one back shortly before half time, but the Belgian side re-established control of the tie when Ouahdi added a third in the 90th minute.
That being said, this week’s hosts have been notably mixed at home this season, and the fact that they have only won twice on their own turf since November – losing four times and drawing twice – will be a major cause for concern for some fans.
On the other hand, the more optimistic amongst the Racing faithful would point out that the club were unfortunate to not qualify for the round of 16 automatically after finishing level on points with eighth-placed Roma as evidence of their team’s superiority in this tie.
/https%3A%2F%2Fsportsmole-media-prod.s3.gra.io.cloud.ovh.net%2Fuploads%2F2025%2F11%2Fimago1068588807-1-6909f1d98f304793297943.jpg)
© Imago / STEINSIEK.CH
Meanwhile, Mario Kovacevic‘s Dinamo are the underdogs this week, not only due to their first-leg deficit, but considering their lacklustre showings in the Europa League so far.
The inverse of their opponents, the Blues finished 23rd in the league phase, scraping through into the knockout playoff round just one point above 25th-placed Young Boys, who were eliminated having missed the cutoff.
However, it would be remiss to state that Kovacevic’s side have no chance of recovering this tie given that their loss against Genk was their only defeat in the last five games.
Additionally, the club have kept an impressive three clean sheets from their four most recent outings across all competitions, not to mention that they have scored at least three goals in a single game on three separate occasions this month alone – a fourth on Thursday could take them through to the round of 16.
Their overall strong run of performances has Dinamo comfortably at the top of the Croatian HNL table, five points clear of second-placed Hajduk Split, and will fill travelling fans with confidence that their team can overcome the odds.
Bolstering that feeling further will be the fact that the Blues have only lost once away from home since the end of November, winning four times and drawing once on the road in that stretch.
Genk Europa League form:
Genk form (all competitions):
Dinamo Zagreb Europa League form:
Dinamo Zagreb form (all competitions):
Team News
/https%3A%2F%2Fsportsmole-media-prod.s3.gra.io.cloud.ovh.net%2Fuploads%2F2025%2F12%2Forange-pictures-konstantinos-karetsas-of-krc-genk-in-action-on-december-4-2025-69539a2a18f31787623350.jpg)
© Imago / Orange Pictures
Genk have a generally fit squad for this clash, though 18-year-old forward Konstantinos Karetsas will sit out after suffering a mild concussion against Liege on Sunday.
In his absence, Junya Ito is likely to start on the right of Hayen’s front three alongside striker Aaron Bibout and fellow winger Yaimar Medina.
As for Dinamo, they will be missing striker Dion Beljo after he earned himself a suspension by picking up a yellow card in the first leg of this playoff, as well as loanee midfielder Ismael Bennacer, who is sidelined due to a calf injury.
With that in mind, expect to see Monsef Bakrar start up top, flanked by Fran Topic and Arber Hoxha, while Josip Misic, Miha Zajc and Luka Stojkovic operate in the centre of the park.
Elsewhere, Scott McKenna and Sergi Dominguez Viloria look set to feature at the heart of Kovacevic’s defence in the absence of centre-back Raul Torrente, who has missed the entire season so far as he works his way back to fitness following an anterior cruciate ligament injury he suffered in May 2025.
Genk possible starting lineup:
Lawal; El Ouahdi, Sadick, Smets, Kayembe; Heymans, Heynen, Steuckers; Ito, Bibout, Medina
Dinamo Zagreb possible starting lineup:
Livakovic; Valincic, McKenna, Dominguez, Perez Vinlof; Stojkovic, Misic, Zajc; Topic, Bakrar, Hoxha
/https%3A%2F%2Fsportsmole-media-prod.s3.gra.io.cloud.ovh.net%2F20%2F33%2Fsm-words-green-background.png)
We say: Genk 1-1 Dinamo Zagreb
Genk have been strong in the Europa League in recent months, and they will be keen to put their domestic disappointment to one side in midweek.
That being said, Dinamo are likely to put up a fight, and even if the Belgian side progress, this game could be closer than ideal with Karetstas unavailable.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.