Motherwell hope to do better in the first leg this time around as they play FK Flamurtari in Albania.

Motherwell captain Stephen Craigan believes that part of the Scottish media have it in for the Fir Park side and are waiting for them trip up again in tonight's first leg of their Europa League second qualifier against FK Flamurtari in Albania. The Lanarkshire side got it on the neck good style when they lost 1-0 at the Excelsior Stadium to Llanelli in the first leg of their opening qualifier. Craigan was criticised by manager Jim Gannon for the loss of the goal, but all was forgiven in the return game when Motherwell hit back with a 3-0 win to take them through to tonight's tricky tie against the relatively unknown Albanian side. Craigan, though, said he is expecting more stick if Motherwell do not continue on a winning streak. 
 
He said: "I don't think the players were stung by the criticism. But I always get the feeling that some people are happy that we get beat sometimes because it gives them something with which to fill pages. It is disappointing to get negative press but it's nice to bounce back and get a positive result but there will be people waiting for us on Thursday night again. It's hard on the younger guys because they are being judged very early in their careers, but the good thing is they will learn from a game like that and they did learn, the whole team learned, we were much better. I don't believe there was an awful lot of a difference between the two games because we dominated the first game and we dominated the second game. In the second game we scored three goals and in the first game we didn't. But we have an awful habit in the UK of over-reacting and judging people very, very quickly. We were judged two Thursdays ago, judged again last Thursday and we will be judged again tomorrow night. That's the unfortunate side of the business, that sometimes people don't get the benefit of the doubt. But we showed that we weren't as bad as some people were making out. We are a little bit more upbeat this week, we have been quite buoyed by the result (in Wales), and we have got a little bit of confidence." 
 
The Fir Park had to suffer an arduous trip via London and Tirana, the capital of Albania, followed by a two-hour bus journey before they get to the stadium. Motherwell fans were warned not to travel following safety concerns, however, before setting off manager Gannon said he was relaxed about the trip. He said: "Wherever you go in the world you have to have concerns but I don't think there is any major problems. I think it is a question of people having their eyes wide open. It's an Eastern European country with some social problems so people need to protect themselves and look after themselves." 
 
Gannon has added midfielder Steve Jennings, who signed last week from Tranmere, to the squad and he has every chance to make his debut. However, Chris Humphrey, Gannon's second signing of the season, will take no part. He has not travelled to Albania with the rest of the squad following signing a three-year contract at Fir Park after rejecting the offer of a new deal at League Two club Shrewsbury Town. His registration was too late to be involved in tonight's European tie.
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