A week on from their first leg stalemate in Cyprus last week, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Pafos FC meet in neutral Serbia in the second leg of their second round Champions League tie on Wednesday night.
Despite both sides creating plenty of chances, it took until the 81st minute for the first goal in this tie in Cyprus last week, and what a goal it was, as Mons Bassouamina’s stunning overhead kick drew first blood for the Cypriot champions.
However, that wasn’t the end of the drama, as substitute Elad Madmon scored a equaliser with his head in the 10th minute of stoppage time, leaving this tie in the balance.
Neither of these two clubs have kicked off their domestic campaigns yet, with both kicking of their respective league seasons in the 23rd of August.
How the bookies view it: Maccabi favourites
Despite not actually playing at home, Maccabi Tel Aviv are favourites for this match, with BoyleSports pricing them at 20/21 to win inside 90 minutes.
The same firm has a win for the Cypriot champions at 5/2, whilst it’s 9/4 for the tie to go to extra time and potentially penalties.
Head to head: Second ever clash
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given Pafos’s recent rise in Cypriot football, last week’s first leg draw was these two clubs' only ever previous meeting.
Players to watch: Turgeman to find the target?
Maccabi Tel Aviv frontman Dor Turgeman has been heavily linked to a move to Rangers this summer. The Israeli international scored 19 goals in league and europe for the record Israeli champions last season, and is worth a look at the goalscorer markets once odds are released.
Predicted line-ups:
Elad Madmon scored the crucial leveller after coming on from the bench last week for The Yellows, but he and new signing Ion Nicolaescu may begin the match on the bench once again.
Mons Bassouamina came off the bench to score that stunning overhead kick for Pafos in the first leg last week, and the new signing from Clermont Foot will be pushing for a start here.
Maccabi Tel Aviv: Gerafi, Asante, Heitor, Stojic, Revivo, Sissokho, Lederman, Peretz, Davida, Patati, Turgeman
Pafos FC: Michail, Correia, Luckassen, Goldar, Pileas, Sunjic, Bruno, Tankovic, Pepe, Dragomir, Bassouamina
Anything else catch the eye?
Both clubs created plenty of chances before they actually got on the scoresheet last week, and I’m expecting another open encounter between the pair in Serbia on Wednesday night.
Both Teams to Score pays 4/5 at William Hill, whilst Over 2.5 Goals is 5/6 at BoyleSports, and both of those appeal to me here.
There was a total of eight cards brandished in the first leg in Cyprus last week, and given what’s on line and the fact the tie is still in the balance, I’m expecting another high card total.
However, no card markets have been released at this time, but definitely something worth to keep your eye on.
GambleAware