Dinamo Tirana host FC Astana on 9 July 2026 at Elbasan Arena, with kick off between 19:00 and 20:00 local time and the return leg in Kazakhstan on 16 July. Whoever advances earns a shot at the league phase or play offs, along with the prize money that makes these early rounds worth taking seriously.
Dinamo got here by finishing fourth in the Albanian Kategoria Superiore, ending 2025/26 on roughly 13 wins and 13 draws from 39 matches with a goals record around 45-38, which is roughly what a mid table side posts when it stumbles its way into Europe. Astana sit around fifth or sixth in the Kazakhstan Premier League, with seven wins from 16 matches and a 22-17 goal difference, with their domestic season effectively stalled and Europe now the main event.
Ilir Daja took charge of Dinamo late in 2024 or early 2025, bringing experience from several Albanian clubs including previous spells at Dinamo itself, while Grigori Babayan has been at Astana long enough to deliver multiple domestic titles and appears to be continuing into 2026. The two have never crossed paths in competitive football and these clubs have never met at senior level, so there is no tactical or head to head precedent to read into.
Astana look the more settled heading into this one, going two wins and two draws from their last five league outings with only a 0-2 loss to Aktobe interrupting the run. Dinamo's pre season has been harder to read: a 1-1 friendly draw against Struga on 1 July left questions unanswered, with late season losses to Egnatia and inconsistent showings against Partizani and others raising further doubts.
Dinamo are carrying injury problems into this one, with right back Bekim Maliqi out with a long term knee issue while left winger Almir Ajzeraj and left back Faton Neziri are both doubtful with recent knocks, leaving the squad thin on the flanks. Astana's squad news is vague at this stage, though they are expected to rotate after their domestic run and field an experienced core.
Dinamo will try to make this ugly, pressing high early and looking to turn the match into a physical contest. The problem is that Astana, who have Champions League group stage experience in their history, are unlikely to be rattled by that and will probably sit deep, looking to exploit the space Dinamo's press leaves behind. Both sides invest heavily in set pieces, with Dinamo leaning on physicality in the box and the long distance travel from Kazakhstan will add up for the visitors over 90 minutes. Elbasan Arena is unlikely to be full but whatever crowd turns up will back Dinamo hard.
A goalless draw suits Astana more than it suits Dinamo: the Albanian side are hard to break down at home but haven't shown much attacking fluency in pre season and with Maliqi, Ajzeraj and Neziri all potentially missing they are not set up to go chasing a goal. With a second leg to come, Astana would take a 0-0 and fly home knowing they defend an even aggregate in Kazakhstan, which structurally favours them. Dinamo, on the other hand, head to Almaty level and without an away goal to protect them.
Predicted score: Dinamo Tirana 0-0 Astana
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
