Fulham head into uncharted territory in Europa League

Fulham FC begins its Europa League campaign this evening with a trip to Vilnius to take on Lithuanian side, FK Vetra. The Cottagers head to the Baltic nation knowing little about what awaits them in terms of both venue and opposition.

FK Vetra reached the third qualifying round of the Europa League by defeating Finnish side, HJK Helsinki, earlier this month. The club is one of two that dominate Lithuanian football, and the Fulham players are not taking their opponents lightly.

“It doesn’t matter who the opposition is, whether it be a non-league team or a Champions League side, you must prepare the same,” defender Paul Konchesky told the Guardian. “We’ll get to know much more about the opposition when we get out to Lithuania and sit down with the manager and have a meeting.”

“We’ve been preparing for this game like we would for a Premier League game. We need to win on Thursday and hopefully we’ll come back to The Cottage with a goal advantage having not conceded any.”

Bookmakers are backing Fulham to take the spoils in tonight’s match, with the Cottagers priced at an average of 1/2 in the match betting markets. FK Vetra are priced 7/2 to score an upset victory over their Premier League opponents.