Champions League Wednesday predictions: High fives for Haifa as they prepare to cuff Sheriff
- Five first-leg ties on Wednesday complete Champions League second qualifying round action
- Recommended bets:
- Maccabi Haifa to win
- Tie or FK Qarabag Double Chance
- Over 2.5 goals - Ludogorets Razgrad vs Olimpija Ljubljana
There are another five matches coming up on Wednesday to complete the Champions League second-qualifying round, first-leg action, including Aris Limassol hosting BATE Borisov and BK Hacken's trip to KI Klaksvik.
Sheriff Tiraspol vs Maccabi Haifa (Wednesday, 6pm)
The stats
Sheriff have scored only six goals in their last 10 Champions League ties, excluding extra time.
Maccabi Haifa have won their last six competitive matches, scoring 22 goals in the process.
The Israeli champs have scored in all of their last 21 league and cup matches.
Prediction
It has been pretty much the perfect start to the season for Israel's Maccabi Haifa, who have played three, won three, and scored nine goals.
They made light work of progessive Maltese outfit Hamruns in the previous qualifying round, chalking up a 6-1 aggregate success.
And at the weekend they lifted the Super Cup courtesy of a 3-1 win over Beitar Jerusalem.
Big-spending Moldovans, Sheriff needed extra time to get the better of Romanian champs Farul Constanta and are arguably a week or two behind Maccabi, with yet another summer influx of players to integrate, so the visitors look the value.
Rakow Czestochowa vs FK Qarabag (Wednesday, 7.15pm)
The stats
Polish champs Rakow have failed to win five of their last nine matches.
Qarabag have lost only three of their last 20 Champions League matches.
Gurban Gurbanov's men have scored in each of their last 15 games.
Prediction
Europa Conference League contenders as recently as March, Qarabag's experience in European competition is critical in these knockout rounds.
Rakow are clearly a good team, upsetting far bigger names to be crowned Ekstraklasa champions in May, and they have started the season in a rich vein of form.
But Qarabag are seasoned now and look overpriced given their pedigree at this level.
At the very least the Tie or Qarabag pick in the Double Chance market makes a lot of appeal.
Ludogorets Razgrad vs Olimpija Ljubljana (Wednesday, 7.45pm)
The stats
Ludogorets have scored in all of their last 11 home league and cup games, piling up 35 goals in the process.
Seven of Olimpija's last 10 competitive matches have produced 2-1 scorelines.
Prediction
Olimpija Ljubljana have won only one of their last eight away matches in all competitions, a run culminating in Saturday's 2-1 loss at Koper in their opening Slovenian league game of the season.
That was their third successive 2-1 scoreline this season after narrow home-and-away wins over Valmiera of Latvia in the Champions League.
Olimpija score goals but cannot keep a clean sheet which augurs well for a high-scoring affair in Razgrad against crack Bulgarians Ludogorets.
Ludogorets have had a great week, crushing Ballkani 4-0 to turn around their Champions League first qualifying-round tie and then battering Etar 5-0 in the league.
