Samsunspor return to European knockout football on Thursday night with a new coach, fresh ambition and a familiar demand: deliver away from home.
The Turkish side face North Macedonia’s champions Shkendija in the first leg of their UEFA Conference League last 16 playoff at the National Arena Todor Proeski in Skopje, with kickoff set for 11:00 p.m. local time.
This will be Samsunspor’s 19th match in European competitions and the first under new coach Thorsten Fink, who replaces Thomas Reis after a difficult domestic spell.
The German signed a 1.5-year deal and now steps straight into a high-stakes tie that could define the club’s season.
Fink takes over a side that showed promise in the league phase but lost momentum late. Samsunspor opened their Conference League campaign with three straight wins, including an impressive 1-0 away victory over Legia Warsaw and commanding 3-0 triumphs against Dynamo Kyiv and Hamrun Spartans.
A 2-2 draw with Breidablik followed before defeats to AEK and Mainz 05 denied them a top-eight finish and forced them into the playoffs.
They ended the league phase 12th, with three wins, two draws and three defeats from eight matches, scoring 26 goals and conceding 20 across their European campaign so far.
Now, with back-to-back losses in the Turkish Super Lig and sitting eighth domestically, the Conference League offers both redemption and momentum.
Samsunspor spokesperson Suat Çakır said the club believe a new chapter has begun.
“Football is not played on paper but on the pitch,” he said. “We want a result that gives us an advantage for the return leg. With our fans in Samsun, we believe we can go through.”
Fink has boosted his UEFA list by adding Cherif Ndiaye and new signings Jaures Assoumou and goalkeeper İrfan Can Eğribayat, all previously ineligible during the group stage.
However, injuries and registration rules limit his options. Bedirhan Çetin, Afonso Sousa and Tanguy Coulibaly remain sidelined, while Emre Kılınç is out with a calf tear. Elayis Tavsan and Yalçın Kayan are unavailable due to squad regulations.
The reshaped squad travelled from Samsun Çarşamba Airport on a charter flight, aiming to secure a first leg edge before next week’s return in Türkiye.
Shkendija, led by coach Jeton Beqiri, have reached the knockout rounds of a European competition for the first time in their history. They squeezed through the league phase in 22nd place, level on points with sides who failed to qualify, advancing on goal difference despite losing 1-0 to AEK Larnaca on the final matchday.
The Macedonian champions won two, drew one and lost three of their six league phase matches. Questions lingered after that narrow qualification, especially as they managed just two shots before being reduced to 10 men in their final outing.
Yet domestically, they look far more assured. Shkendija have won 13 of 18 league matches, boast the best defensive record in the Macedonian top flight with only 15 goals conceded, and recently followed a 2-0 win over Struga with a 4-1 rout of Tikves Kavadarci to stay firmly in the title race.
They have also remained unbeaten at home in Europe this season, a record that strengthens belief in Skopje.
Beqiri will be without Liridon Latifi, suspended after his red card in the last European match, and Aleksander Trumci, banned for yellow card accumulation. Arbin Zejnullai has recovered from injury and scored at the weekend, while veteran captain Besart Ibraimi is expected to lead the attack.
Samsunspor are playing in Europe for only the third time in their history. Their previous continental appearances came in the Intertoto Cup in the late 1990s, where they defeated Lyngby and Crystal Palace before falling to Werder Bremen in the semifinals.
Now, 27 years later, the stakes feel higher.
