Injuries a concern for Preud´homme

Club Brugge coach Michel Preud’homme is worried injuries may derail his side’s UEFA Europa League campaign.

Bjorn Engels (knee), Thomas Meunier (stomach), Oscar Duarte (thigh) and Felipe Gedoz (groin) are all sidelined.

The injuries are a concern for Preud’homme, who said it would make it difficult for his side as they prepare for their quarter-final first leg at Dnipro on Thursday.

“We have a lot of injuries, so deciding the line-up is not too difficult. We will start the match with a good team and hope to take our chances,” he said.

“The annoying thing is that, especially in Europe, our bench has often made the difference in games as we have a large squad.

“That has allowed us to compete on three fronts, so starting with a good team tomorrow is not an issue.

“However, the amount of matches at this stage, coupled with having a reduced squad, could give us problems.”

Dnipro have eliminated Ajax and Olympiacos on their way to the quarter-finals, highlighting just how dangerous they are.

Preud’homme said those playing down the Ukrainian side’s achievements failed to notice how tough they made life for opponents.

“Dnipro deserve to be in the quarters. The first thing I told my players about Dnipro is that they are a side who make their opponents look bad,” he said.

“After their ties against Ajax and Olympiacos people said those teams played badly, but after analysing things you notice that Dnipro force opponents to play that way because of their organisation and mentality.”