The first round of UEFA Champions League qualification kicked off last week as 28 teams compete across 14 matches to get the upper hand before the second leg in an attempt to move into the second round.
This week will see these crucial second legs take place, and there is sure to be plenty of drama as each team battles it out to keep their Champions League dreams alive. Read on as we take a look at a selection of the matches and pick out our top tips:
HJK Helsinki vs Panevezys
HJK’s heavy 3-0 defeat to Panevezys came as a huge surprise due to the huge amount of experience that HJK boast in European competition compared to their opponents, but also their respective league form. HJK sit top of the Finnish league while Panevezys are down in ninth position in the Lithuanian league.
We think HJK will fancy their chances of victory on home soil in this second leg, and we believe they will secure the victory in this game. However, we don’t think they will be able to overturn the 3-0 deficit, leaving Panevezys to go through to the second round.
HJK Helsinki to win, 1.21
Steaua Bucharest vs AC Virtus
Steaua Bucharest hold a commanding six-goal lead after a fantastic 7-1 victory in the first leg in San Marino, and they are strong favourites to win the second leg with yet another big scoreline.
The hosts had an incredible 80% possession in the first game, taking a total of 22 shots compared to their opponents’ five and while they are likely to field a weaker team with such a big lead, we believe the second leg will be more of the same for Steaua Bucharest. For that reason, you can expect the hosts will win and over 3.5 goals will be scored.
Steaua Bucharest to win & over 3.5 goals, 1.25
Shamrock Rovers vs Vikingur Reykjavik
The first leg between these two ended 0-0 in Iceland with Shamrock Rovers having to defend for large spells of the game, but they were unfortunate to not have the lead coming into the second leg after having a majority of the better chances.
While Vikingur may be boosted by their dominant performance in the home leg, we think that Shamrock will look to play on the offensive in their home stadium and could see Rovers going on to win this one.
Shamrock Rovers to win, 3.10
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