Both Kairat Almaty and Olympiacos will be looking to breathe some much-needed life into their Champions League campaigns when the pair face off at the Astana Arena on Tuesday afternoon.
Following five rounds of league-phase action, the two teams currently find themselves outside the all-important top 24 in the standings.
Champions League newcomers Kairat Almaty have come away empty-handed from four of their opening five matches, with their solitary point coming against Pathos on matchday three.
Having secured back-to-back titles in the Kazakhstan Premier League at the tail end of October, competitive action has been thin on the ground for Rafael Urazbakhtin’s side over the past month.
As for Olympiacos, they are also still searching for their first Champions League win of the season, having recorded two draws and three defeats to date.
On the domestic front, Jose Luis Mendilibar’s men are leading the way in the Greek Super League, with Saturday’s 3-0 win against OFI their seventh consecutive victory.
How the bookies view it: Greek giants to get up and running
The bookmakers suggest that Olympiacos will claim their first Champions League win of the season at the sixth attempt, with an away win priced at 1/2 with bet365.
Kairat Almaty are 5/1 underdogs with bet365 as they look to claim what would be a historic victory, while a draw is deemed unlikely at 7/2 with the same firm.
Head to head: History book blank
It will come as no surprise that Kairat Almaty and Olympiacos will meet for the first time ever on Tuesday afternoon.
Players to watch: Keep an eye out for El Kaabi
Having already scored against both Barcelona and Real Madrid in this season's Champions League, Ayoub El Kaabi looks like an attractive anytime goalscorer option at 4/5 with bet365.
Dastan Satpayev netted one of Kairat's two goals against Copenhagen on matchday five. The Chelsea-bound forward is as big as 16/5 with Betfred to score in this contest.
Predicted line-ups
As has been the case across the previous five matchdays, the hosts will be without injured duo Elder Santana and Joao Paulo.
Alexandros Paschalakis, Konstantinos Angelakis, and Panagiotis Retsos are all expected to miss out for Olympiacos.
Kairat: Anarbekov; Tapalov, Martynovich, Sorokin, Mata; Glazer, Arad; Mrynskiy, Jorginho, Gromyko; Satpaev
Olympiacos: Tzolakis; Rodinei, Kalogeropoulos, Pirola, Ortega; Garcia, Mouzakitis; Martins, Chiquinho, Podence; El Kaabi
Anything else catch the eye?
With Olympiacos too short to back at the above-mentioned odds, look for the visitors to emerge victorious in a game featuring under 4.5 goals at a value 5/6 with Ladbrokes.
This combination has landed in each of the visitors’ last seven victories in the Greek Super League.
Each of the Greek side’s last three domestic wins has been accompanied by a clean sheet, and a repeat here also appeals at 6/4 with bet365.
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