ABERDEEN begin their bid to reach the Europa League group stages when they travel to Sweden to take on BK Hacken in the first leg of their playoff tie on Thursday evening.
The Dandies were last dining in the group stages of Europe's secondary club competition way back in the 2007-08 campaign, emerging from their pool in the process to set up a glamour tie with Bayern Munich.
After storming to a third place in the Scottish Premiership last season, Aberdeen know they have the safety net of the Europa Conference League group stage if they come up short against BK Hacken.
Barry Robson's side warmed up for this clash with their first competitive victory of the season after securing a place in the Viaplay Cup quarter-finals with a narrow 2-1 win at Stirling Albion on Friday night.
As for BK Hacken, they remain just one point off the summit of the Swedish Allsvenskan after making it three league wins on the spin with a 3-2 win over Sirius on Sunday.
Per-Mathias Høgmo's men now turn their attention back to continental matters this midweek, having already made light work of Lithuanian outfit Žalgiris by an 8-1 aggregate scoreline in the previous round.
Outright Betting
BK Hacken, who have avoided defeat in each of their last seven home matches, go into this first leg tie as odds-on 8/11 (Bet 365) favourites.
Aberdeen head into their first European contest in three season's as 7/2 (Boylesports) underdogs while the draw is an unfancied 3/1 (UniBet).
Betting Angles
The money has started to come for BK Hacken but I’m still prepared to get on board with the home team here with a -0.75 start on the Asian line at 10/11 (Bet 365).
This selection would provide a full pay-out if the Swedes secure a first leg lead by two goals or more, with a half-stakes winner banked if they earn a victory by a one-goal margin.
As already alluded to, the Wasps are sitting second in the Swedish top-flight at present, and the bedrock of their title challenge has been built on their strong showings at their Bravida Arena base.
Per-Mathias Høgmo's hosts have triumphed in 10 of their 11 Swedish Allsvenskan home matches this season, pocketing a league-high 30 points in the process.
It's also worth pointing out that Hacken have claimed top honours in eight of their last 10 matches across all competitions, hitting multiple goals in a noteworthy nine of those assignments.
While Aberdeen certainly won't be fazed by the task in hand, they should have a tough time of it trying to tame a Hacken team who are on a high and have discovered a real scoring touch of late.
What's more, the Swedish outfit do have an advantage on their Scottish opponents in terms of match sharpness in that they’ve already played a number of league games, while this will just be the Dons' fourth outing of the season.
With all of this in mind, backing what is an in-form Hacken team to overcome a -0.75 hurdle on the Asian Handicap holds appeal at 10/11 with Bet 365.
This UEFA Europa League match between BK Hacken and Aberdeen will be played on Aug 24, 2023 and kick off at 18:00. Check below for our tipsters best BK Hacken vs Aberdeen prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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