Gent will face LNZ Cherkasy in their bid for a place in the Europa Conference League. The Belgian Pro League side will face the team from Ukraine on the 23rd of July, with the first leg set to be away from home. The home fixture for Gent will take place the following week.
Cherkasy had a fantastic season in the Ukrainian Premier League, finishing second behind champions Shakhtar Donetsk. It has been some rise from the team that relocated to Cherkasy back in 2021. At the end of the 2022/2023 season they won promotion to the top flight for the first time and have now reached the qualification rounds of a European competition for the first time. This will not be an easy game for Gent, who will have to look out for attacking midfielder Yegor Tverdokhlib, who scored eight goals and provided seven assists in 26 games last season.
Gent have, despite missing out on European football last season, had a decent time of it in the Conference League in recent seasons. They will have to do it the hard way this year if they want to make the league phase, with multiple rounds of qualification ahead of them.
