FC Copenhagen welcome Sparta Prague to Parken for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League third round qualifier. The Danish side looked imperious in the previous round and should have the upper hand over Sparta, who have found things difficult on their recent forays into the competition.
FC Copenhagen are looking to make another appearance in the group stage of the Champions League after reaching the main draw last season. Although they failed to progress, Parken did not taste any defeat despite facing Borussia Dortmund and eventual winners Manchester City.
Having joined this year’s competition in the second round, Copenhagen eased past Icelandic side Breidablik 8-3 on aggregate. They claimed a 2-0 victory in the first meeting before running out 6-3 winners in the return leg at Parken.
Both results are an extension of Copenhagen’s early season form in the Danish Superliga where they have won their opening three matches, scoring nine goals in the process. However, defending appears to be a problem for Jacob Neestrup’s men, who have kept just one clean sheet in their last nine home matches across all competitions.
Sparta Prague have also made a bright start to the Czech Liga and are top of the standings after wining their opening three matches. They travel to Parken off the back of 5-2 victory over Padubice last Saturday with Jan Kuchta netting a brace.
While Sparta Prage are heading into Tuesday’s clash with confidence, their recent forays into the Champions League have been less than stellar. The last appearance for Brian Priske’s men in the competition was during the 2021-22 season where they crashed out in the third qualifying round after losing home and away to French side Monaco.
Another small problem for Sparta Prague is an unconvincing record on their recent travels having won just once in their last four away matches across all competitions. Their defending is also not so solid having conceded in two of the last three matches in that run.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have installed Copenhagen as overwhelming favourites with a home win priced at 11/10 by bet365. A victory for Sparta Prague is valued at 5/2 by Unibet while a draw is set at odds of 13/5 by BoyleSports.
Head to head
There have been only two previous meetings between both teams with Copenhagen doing the double over Sparta Prague during the group stage of the 2009-10 Europa League. The Danish side claimed a 1-0 victory at Parken before running out 3-0 winners in the return leg.
Players to watch
Diego Goncalves has been the standout player for Copenhagen in the early stages of the season. The attacker has found the net four times in the past three matches and is priced at 21/10 by bet365 to maintain his scoring run.
Sparta Prague also have attacking quality of their own with Jan Kuchta already looking sharp. The striker is coming off a brace in his previous outing and could be backed at 21/10 by bet365 to get on the score sheet on Tuesday.
Anything else catch the eye?
Copenhagen have seen over 3.5 goals in their last three matches and given the attacking quality on both sides, a repeat could be on the cards at 9/4 with Unibet. Over 2.5 goals can also be considered at 10/11 with 10bet.
Both teams have a knack for making fast starts and can be backed to score in the first half at 7/2 with Paddy Power.
This UEFA Champions League match between FC Copenhagen and Sparta Prague will be played on Aug 9, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best FC Copenhagen vs Sparta Prague prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
