APOEL will be seeking to cap off their Europa League Group B campaign in style on Thursday, with Thomas Christiansen’s men needing only a draw against second-place Olympiacos to finish top of their section.

Qualification into the Last 32 of the Europa League was clinched last month in Kazakhstan despite APOEL going down to a 2-1 defeat. Olympiacos’ 1-1 draw in the other game against Swiss side Young Boys meant that the Greek and Cypriot champions had booked the qualifying tickets.

Thursday night’s meeting at the Nicosia’s GSP Stadium is expected to simply pan out who finishes first and who ends up runners-up. APOEL – who are one point ahead of Olympiacos – need only a draw to top the group.

The Greek champions will be without suspended Spanish defender Alberto Botia, who picked up a third yellow card in his side’s 1-1 draw with Young Boys in the previous game.

APOEL will also be without a Spanish defender of their own, following Inaki Astiz’s straight red card in the 2-1 defeat in Astana – a sending off that ultimately saw Astana seize the initiative and fight back to win 2-1, after George Efrem had given the Cypriots the lead with a blistering volley.

The group winners and runners-up advance to the round of 32, where they are joined by the eight third-placed teams in the Champions League group stage.

The draw for the round of 32 will be held on December 12, with the first legs to be played on February 16, and the second legs being played on February 23.

APOEL remain the only Cypriot side to have qualified beyond the group stage of a UEFA competition, despite previous group stage campaigns by Anorthosis, AEL, Apollon (twice) and AEK Larnaca.

Back in 2012, APOEL stunned world football when they not only topped their Champions League group, but also eliminated Lyon in the Last 16, before going on to reach the quarter-finals and a famous match-up against Real Madrid.

Cyprus Weekly