Bournemouth have recovered from a rocky start to the season, where they were constantly getting unlucky, and are now one of the most in-form sides in Europe.

Bournemouth have won each of their last six matches across all competitions, including each of their last two Europa League matches, with the most impressive part of this run being that all six of these victories have come to nil.

We just need them to win one half here, which looks more than plausible against a Sparta Prague side who have conceded in all three of their Europa League matches so far, against lower quality opposition.

Sparta have racked up a total of 22 corners in their three European outings this season, averaging 7.3 corners per game. Even though that figure is heavily influenced by a count of 13 corners against Ararat in round one, the Czech side have been adept at getting to the byline, and they should be front-footed on home turf here.

Bournemouth are an in-form team, but their matches haven’t been totally one-sided. In fact, the Cherries are conceding an average of 5.6 corners per game when playing away this season, which suggests that the hosts will be able to find chances going forward.

Andy Irving is expected to start in midfield for Sparta on Thursday night, after the Scottish international completed a move from West Ham over the summer. The 26-year-old has scored three goals in his ten appearances for his new club, and has hit the ground running.

Irving is averaging 1.2 shots per 90 across all competitions for Sparta this season, which is a notable increase on his figures at West Ham, which shows how he is given more attacking freedom for his new side. For context, he failed to score in any of his 18 appearances for the Hammers from July 2024 to January 2026.

Marco Rose has typically opted for rotation in midweek matches, but Marcus Tavernier has been the player who he cannot afford to drop. The 27-year-old has only missed one game this season, which was against Lincoln City right at the start of the campaign. Tavernier managed eight goals in 35 appearances across all competitions last season, and he is well on track to better that tally to have his most prolific campaign to date. The attacking midfielder already has six goals to his name from just 14 appearances across all competitions this term.

Tavernier is averaging 2.35 shots per 90 across all competitions this season, and he is likely to be the designated free-kick taker for the Cherries midweek.

Roman Macek looks set for a massive task in defensive midfield here, having to contain the Bournemouth forward line. He is likely to find duels against Evanilson, who is averaging 2.6 fouls drawn per 90 across all competitions.

Macek is typically the more defensive-minded player in the double pivot, and he will have plenty of ground to cover at times. The 29-year-old is averaging 1.7 fouls per 90 across all competitions this season, and he has landed this selection in five of his last nine starts, picking up three yellow cards in that stretch as well.