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Europa League: Analysing Southampton’s Group K Gauntlet

By Aaron Preston

SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 13: General View of St Mary's stadium prior to kick off during the Premier League match between Southampton and Watford at St Mary's Stadium on August 13, 2016 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images)
SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 13: General View of St Mary's stadium prior to kick off during the Premier League match between Southampton and Watford at St Mary's Stadium on August 13, 2016 in Southampton, England. (Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images) /
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HADERSLEV, DENMARK – AUGUST 18: Action from the UEFA Europa League Playoff match between SonderjyskE and AC Sparta Praha at Sydbank Park on August 18, 2016 in Haderslev, Denmark. (Photo by Jan Christensen / FrontzoneSport via Getty Images)
HADERSLEV, DENMARK – AUGUST 18: Action from the UEFA Europa League Playoff match between SonderjyskE and AC Sparta Praha at Sydbank Park on August 18, 2016 in Haderslev, Denmark. (Photo by Jan Christensen / FrontzoneSport via Getty Images) /

Sparta Praha

Founded: 1893

Ground: Generali Arena, Prague

Manager: Zdeněk Ščasný

League Position: 2nd, Czech First League

Sparta Praha (Prague) are one of the oldest clubs in the Czech Republic, and by far the most successful with 33 Czech (former Czechoslovak) First League titles and 14 Czech/Czechoslovak Super Cup wins to their name.

Sparta have had a consistently-dominant run in the Czech leagues of late, but haven’t won their league since 2014 and have been knocked out of Champions League play the past three years in qualification rounds.

Related Story: Group K No Walkovers for Saints

With a team composed almost entirely of Czech internationals, the campaign ahead is as much a chance to showcase the nation’s talent as the club’s, and seasoned Czech manager Zdeněk Ščasný will want to make his second outing with the club yield some big-league silverware.

Ščasný’s Sparta play a variant on 4-4-2 using two defensive midfielders in the centre of the pitch, with the two attacking mids split wide on the wings. He’s also been known to switch to an attacking 4-3-3 and a 3-5-2 similar to that employed by Inter, so it will be interesting to see which formation he brings to Southampton and how the Saints react.

Predictions: Sparta Praha 1-1 Southampton; Southampton 2-1 Sparta Praha

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