IT'S being billed as the biggest game in St Johnstone's history and Callum Davidson will be hoping a passionate Perth crowd can help his side dump LASK Linz to reach the Europa Conference League group stage.
Saints upset the odds to claim a 1-1 draw in Austria last week (below) and know a victory back at McDiarmid Park will secure a £3million windfall and guarantee more big Euro nights this term.
But Davidson's side have been in this movie before, with a shock 1-1 draw away to Galatasaray in the Europa League qualifiers followed by a 4-2 defeat back on home soil.
So the fans packing into McDiarmid Park will be hoping there's no sense of deja vu as Davidson's players bid to dump a LASK side with a good European pedigree.
St Johnstone followed up that battling stalemate in Austria by losing 1-0 at home to Dundee United while Linz ground out another stalemate with Hartberg to make it three games without a win.
LASK have reached the Europa League group stage for the last two seasons but look like a team in decline, winning just three of their seven games this term.
So if Saints can produce the big-game heroics that saw them win both domestic cups last term they stand a good chance of claiming a notable scalp.
How the bookies view it
Despite having home advantage, St Johnstone are the outsiders with McBookie pricing them 29/20 to qualify and LASK Linz just 8/15. For a win inside 90 minutes, Saints are 27/10 with Unibet while the Austrians are 21/20 at the same firm and the stalemate 23/10.
Players to watch
Glenn Middleton is back in Perth on loan from Rangers and has the quality to make the difference for St Johnstone. He's a threat from free-kicks and with shots from distance, with McBookie pricing him at 9/4 for a goal.
I flagged up Mamoudoou Karamoko as LASK's biggest threat ahead of the first leg and the French striker duly scored their leveller from the spot. With Karamoko on their penalties, he looks good value again in the return at 11/5 with McBookie for anytime scorer.
Anything else catch the eye?
Betting on under 2.5 goals paid off for me in the first leg but there were goals galore when Galatasaray came to Perth after I had bet against BTTS.
So it's hard to know which way this game will go but I've a feeling it could be tight again as both sides know a single goal might be enough to win it. The half-time draw appeals at 11/10 with Bet365 while I'm going for under 2.5 goals again at 8/11 with McBookie. A one-goal winning margin for either side pays 5/4 with the same firm.
This UEFA Europa League Conference match between St Johnstone and LASK Linz will be played on Aug 26, 2021 and kick off at 19:00. Check below for our tipsters best St Johnstone vs LASK Linz prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
