Andy Preece is urging his Airbus UK Broughton side to believe they can create history despite the daunting prospect of overturning a 3-1 deficit in Croatia tonight.
The Wingmakers need to score at least three away goals against full-time NK Lokomotiva Zagreb to progress to the Europa League second qualifying round after the first leg defeat at Bangor.
But director of football Preece believes his players showed enough last Thursday to give themselves hope of causing ‘an upset of huge proportions’.
Tall order
Airbus deserved their 1-0 half-time lead through former Chester FC forward Wayne Riley, but were undone by swift counter-attacks and some slick passing as Lokomotiva showed their class.
Before flying out to Zagreb yesterday morning, Preece said: “If we play like we did in the first half for 90 minutes then anything can happen. We will go for it and we have to believe we can do it. That 45 minutes was one of the best performances I’ve seen from us. We did everything we talked about and it all went to plan. If we can replicate that then you just never know.
“We had chances and could have gone two or three up, which would have given us a great chance. It’s a massive ask and it would be an upset of huge proportions if we were to win the game, let alone go through, but we will create chances and if we can take one or two then it could happen.”
LOOK: Action from Airbus UK Broughton's first-leg loss against NK Lokomotiva Zagreb
It's not over
Preece rated Lokomotiva as even better than last year’s Europa League opponents FK Haugesund, who beat Airbus 3-2 on aggregate.
“The way they moved the ball and countered, they were so good. Going forward they were so inventive and that’s very difficult to defend against, but we caused them problems too and I’m sure we will again,” he said.
“There’s no point us going there thinking it’s all over because it’s not. For a part-time team to get a result there would be almost unheard of, but we’ll certainly being going for it and giving it our best. To win the game would be amazing and create a bit of history in itself, but if we were to go through it’d be dreamland.”
Fellow Welsh Premier League side Newtown visit Valletta of Malta tonight defending a 2-1 lead while Bala Town aim to overturn a 3-1 deficit when they welcome Luxembourg's FC Differdange 03 to Maes Tegid.
