What are the key sporting factors of the second leg of the Conference League play-off between the Gym and Maccabi Tel Aviv on Thursday. Lucien Favre and Jean-Clair Todibo provide some answers ahead of Thursday's 8pm kick-off.

CONFIDENCE AND ASKING QUESTIONS

The Gym is coming off two consecutive defeats, at Bloomfield Stadium and at Clermont. "We have to do better, we have to do more, all together, accept and react as a team," said Lucien Favre. "Of course we ask questions of ourselves," continued JC Todibo. "We remain professionals. We ask questions of ourselves almost every game, but there is no problem. We still have some good moments. There are not only negative things in what we show in our games. We have the quality to play a great game tomorrow and finally launch our season. We remain very confident.” A confidence shared by Lucien Favre: "Yes, it hasn't changed, I still have the feeling that we're going to qualify. It's an intuition, I feel it. Over there, we had a good first half, with a lot of chances. We conceded an avoidable goal, even if you have to admit that they created the chance well. We were better. We have to repeat this performance and we have to all be there because we really want to go through. I said it before the game in Tel Aviv: we have to go through!”

CALMNESS AND SERENITY

To get through the play-offs, the Gym will have to show efficiency, which has been lacking since the beginning of the season. But they will not be caught out by the stakes of the game. "We're preparing for it by remaining calm and serene," continues the central defender. "A football match is always played mentally. We mustn't throw ourselves into the lion's den, because we don't want to concede any silly chances, but we want to set the pace." It's important to take full advantage of the support of the red and black fans, who will be "very, very important," said Todibo. "As a player, it's huge to be pushed on by the fans. It adds to the desire and determination. The fans will be there to encourage us and we will do our best to satisfy them.”
In terms of tactics, Lucien Favre did not rule out any option, admitting that his players could just as easily attack the match in "4-2-3-1 as in 4-3-3 or 3-5-2". All this while clearly defining the area where he wants to see his group take a step forward.

As for what the opponent might offer, the Swiss considers several scenarios. "They might wait or they might play normally. I watched the game against Thessaloniki and the return leg they played. I don't know. We are preparing for everything."