Swansea
Swansea will be confident of securing a spot in the next round of the Europa League when they face St Gallen. Reuters

Swansea City will look for the necessary point to advance to the next stage of the Europa League when they visit St. Gallen on Thursday.

The Welsh side, after a bright start to their European campaign, have lost their rhythm a little, and find themselves needing at least a point to ensure qualification to the next round of Europe's second-tier competition.

Valencia have already qualified from Group A as winners, with Swansea second on eight points from five matches. Their opponents for Thursday - St Gallen - cannot make it to the last 32, but the Swiss side can dent the Premier League team's chances.

Kuban Krasnodar are the only side than can catch Swansea, but for that to happen the Russian side need a victory at Valencia, and hope St Gallen top Swansea.

"Qualification is in our hands, and that's very important," Swansea goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel was quoted as saying by the club's official website. "Of course, it also depends on how Kuban do in Valencia, but we will only be concentrating on our match.

"We want to qualify for the next round by getting a good result in St Gallen.  Of course, it won't be easy as it proved when we played them at the Liberty. But the whole squad is determined to go to Switzerland and get the result we need to get through.

"A positive result will give us a good feeling and a bit of momentum for the league game at Norwich on Sunday."

The last time Swansea faced St Gallen, the Welsh side came away with all three points thanks to a 1-0 victory at the Liberty Stadium, with Wayne Routledge scoring the only goal. It was a difficult three points, however, and Swansea skipper Ashley Williams is expecting another tough test in Switzerland.

"They are a difficult team to play against -- they proved that at the Liberty Stadium," Williams said. "They battled for everything and we did well to come away with a victory. 

"After the draw against Hull on Monday it's a game we want to win to extend our unbeaten run to three games and qualify for the knockout stages. We are still enjoying playing in Europe although it's a challenge to play two - sometimes three -- games in a week.

"But I feel we have the squad equipped to do that. Hopefully we can get through on Thursday and then concentrate on the league for a while."

Swansea manager Michael Laudrup has been boosted by the availability of striker Wilfried Bony and keeper Michel Vorm, both of whom have travelled to Switzerland with the squad. With Michu returning to action on Monday in the 1-1 draw with Hull, Laudrup's attacking options have increased considerably.

Leon Britton (broken toe) and Gary Monk (knee), however, remain sidelined.

Where to Watch Live

The game is scheduled for an 11.30 pm IST start with live coverage on Ten Sports. You can also catch the action via live streaming by clicking HERE. To catch the match in the U.S., click HERE. Viewers in the U.K. can live stream the game by clicking HERE. Viewers from the Middle East and North Africa, click HERE.