QARABAG are looking to reach the Champions League group stage for just the second time and will be hoping to make home advantage count in their third qualifying round clash with Ludogorets.
Although the Azerbaijani side bowed out early in last season's qualifiers, it led to a memorable Europa League campaign that saw them blaze a trail to the last 16 before being edged out by Bayer Leverkusen in a thriller.
That will have boosted confidence for their crack at this season's Champions League but getting past Ludogorets won't be easy as Qarabag bid to reach the groups for the first time since 2017.
A trip to Azerbaijan is one of the trickiest hurdles in the early stages of a European campaign so the Bulgarian side will be looking to keep the tie alive heading into the second leg.
Ludogorets are no novices when it comes to the Champions League, having reached the group stage twice in the last decade. But the last of those glory runs came eight years ago so they are desperate to secure a seat at the top table once more.
Like Qarabag they also had a good run in Europe last term, reaching the last 32 of the Conference League before bowing out to Servette, so this should be a tight tie.
How the bookies view it: Qarabag odds-on for first-leg win
Qarabag are strong at home so it's no great surprise to see them as Betfred's 7/10 favourites. Ludogorets are 18/5 for the win and a stalemate pays 5/2.
Head to head: New ground broken
These sides have never faced off before in European competition and Qarabag have yet to face Bulgarian opposition. Lugogorets are also heading to Azerbaijan for the first time on Euro duty.
Players to watch: Juninho to the four again
Brazilian forward Juninho was Qarabag's hero in the last round, netting four times across the two legs in their 7-0 aggregate win over Lincoln Red Imps. The 27-year-old, full name Olávio Vieira dos Santos Júnior, looks the best bet for anytime scorer once that market is priced up.
Bernard Tekpetey has made a promising start to the season for Ludogorets, scoring against both Dinamo Batumi and Dinamo Misk in Champions League qualifying. The Ghanaian should provide the biggest threat to the Qarabag defence.
Probable line-ups
Both teams should be along similar lines to their last outing in Champions League qualifying with so much as stake.
Qarabag: Mustafazada, Bayramov, Vesovic, Medina, Romao, Benzia, Jankovic, Zoubir, Andrade, Juninho
Ludogorets: Bonmann, Nedyalkov, Almeida, Witry, Verdon, Piotrowski, Nedelev, Chochev, Rick, Cruz, Tekpetey.
Anything else catch the eye?
Ludogorets haven't travelled well so far in Champions League qualifying, losing 1-0 in both Batumi and Minsk. That suggests a Qarabag win to nil could pay off here at 7/4 while backing the Baku side to be winning at half-time and full-time is priced 13/8.
I'd imagine the Bulgarians will set up quite defensively to begin with and this game could take a bit of time to warm up as the teams size each other up. That makes backing most goals to come in the second half a decent option at 23/20.
This UEFA Champions League match between Qarabag and Ludogorets will be played on Aug 6, 2024 and kick off at 17:00. Check below for our tipsters best Qarabag vs Ludogorets prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
