Kilmarnock boss insists 'nobody will really give us a chance' after Europa League draw

Derek McInnes insists Killmarnock will be ‘well versed’ in Europa League opponents Cercle Brugge by the time they visit Ayrshire next month.

The Rugby Park side were drawn against the Belgian outfit in last week’s Europa League second qualifying round draw with the first leg being in Scotland on July 25.

The two sides then meet again on August 1 at the Jan Breydel Stadion and while the gaffer admitted he knew little about the club prior to the draw, he says that will be far from the case come kick-off.

He said: “It’s exciting to see Kilmarnock in that draw and for us to try and be as best prepared as we can. Nobody will really give us a chance - they’re seeded for a reason and the Belgian league is littered with top talent.

“We don’t know too much about them but by the time the game comes round we’ll be well versed. We’ve got our scouts going out to watch them and we’ve got all their games on our laptops now to watch from last season.

“We’ll be well versed in their strengths and how they play and we’ve just got to be as ready for that as we possible can be from our own side of it.”

He added: “From a technical point of view, I think Cercle Brugge will be up there. It’s a difficult game for us but we knew the calibre of teams that we were going to be involved with. We knew it was going to be difficult.”

The first leg will be the club’s first competitive fixture of the campaign and while he knows it’s unlikely they’ll be at peak performance, he insists that is exactly what they’ll be striving for - and he called on the fans to play their part in ensuring Killie have something to take to Belgium.

He said: “Nobody is ever going to be at their best that early in the season but I think with the nature of the game and the level of opponent, it’s important that we try and strive to get there.

“Hopefully there’s a big crowd in to get behind the lads. We’re going to have to latch on to every bit of help and support that we can to get a positive result but I think it is important that we try and get a positive result to try and get over Belgium with.”

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