Qarabag - APOEL Prediction, Picks and Tips
The starting shot for all returns in the third preliminary round of the Champions League will be provided on Tuesday evening from the Azersun Arena, in the Azerbaijani capital Baku, where Qarabag and APOEL face each other. The home club defends a comfortable 2-1 lead from the first leg, but the visitors from Cyprus have not yet thrown in the towel.
Qarabag can hardly miss a place in the play-offs of the Champions League. The Azerbaijans often have a hard time in European away matches, partly due to the long travel times, but were able to stunt last week at the GSP Stadium in the Cypriot capital Nicosia by beating the local top club APOEL with 1-2. The Azerbaijani mainly had to watch how the Cypriots dictated the game, but were then life threatening in the changeover. Even with a narrow 0-1 defeat Qarabag is in the play-offs of the Champions League, but I expect that the team of coach Gurban Gurbanov will also go full in their own house for the victory. The last defeat in the own Azersun Arena in Baku dates from November 29 last year, when Bas Dost's Sporting CP turned out to be 1-6 strong. Since then, however, the team has been unbeaten for its own audience for more than eight months. There is also quite a lot of quality around. The Spanish midfielder Michel was good for more than one hundred and fifty games in top competitions such as La Liga and the Premier League, and the new addition Jaime Romero has everything to raise Qarabag to a higher level.
APOEL felt more or less robbed after last week's 1-2 home defeat. The Cypriots had much more possession than Qarabag, and also had three times as many goal attempts than the visitors. However, quality goes beyond quantity, because the best opportunities were not for the home club but for the visitors. The frustration from the stands was mainly focused on trainer Paolo Tramezzani, whose 3-5-2 formation was once again unable to break pots. For the time being the Italian gets the trust of the board, but that could change quickly in the event of a possible switch-off next Tuesday. Tramezzani's problem is that he clings too stubbornly to his system, without taking into account his player material. Players like Dragan Mihajlovic and Antonio Jakolis are misused and therefore underperformed. Striker Andrija Pavlovic, however, still believes in a happy ending: 'We really don't need a miracle. We don't have to make one hundred goals. " APOEL does not have to make a hundred, but there are very few teams that manage to score twice when they visit Qarabag - something the Cypriots will have to do to keep their Champions League dream alive.
Our recommendation tip for Qarabag - APOEL : BTS / NO @ 1,84