Maccabi Haifa and Apollon Limassol Have the Champions League Playoffs in Their Sights
Maccabi Haifa vs Apollon Limassol - 03/08/2022
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There are 6 fixtures in the champions path of the 2022/23 Champions League third round qualifying this week, including the meeting between Maccabi Haifa and Apollon Limassol
The first leg will be played at the Sammy Ofer Stadium, giving Maccabi Haifa home advantage.
Maccabi Haifa have yet to start their domestic league but they have played 3 competitive fixtures leading into this match, including the second qualifying round of the Champions League.
Maccabi Haifa were paired with Olympiakos of Greece in what looked a tough tie and the Israelis were held to a 1-1 draw at home thanks to a late equaliser.
That saw Olympiakos enter the second leg as favourites but Maccabi Haifa produced a tremendous performance to win 4-0 and progress to the third qualifying round.
Their other competitive game this season ended in defeat against Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the Israel Super Cup fixture, with Maccabi Haifa going on penalties following a 1-1 draw.
In terms of the Champions League, Maccabi Haifa have recorded only 1 win from their last 5 games and that was against Olympiakos this season.
There have been defeats against Genk and Kairat, both of which were away from home. Maccabi Haifa have a good recent home record in the Champions League and they are undefeated in their last 5 games on home soil. Trends show both teams have scored in each of those 5 matches.
Apollon Limassol travel to the Sammy Ofer Stadium having yet to play a competitive fixture this season. They have played three friendly matches since the domestic league season finished in May and failed to win any of them. There were defeats at Doxa and Torino plus a 3-3 draw at Mezőkövesd-Zsóry.
Apollon Limassol finished last season with a mixed bag of results in the Cypriot 1. Division. They managed to win only 2 of their final 12 league matches but lost only 2 of those games and that was good enough to win the title.
We must go back to the 2006/07 season to find the last time Apollon Limassol played in the Champions League. They were eliminated in the first qualifying round having lost 1-0 at Cork City in the first leg and were then held to a 1-1 draw at home in the second leg.
Looking ahead to the team news and Maccabi Haifa are likely to go with the same team that started the win against Olympiakos. That means Frantzdy Pierrot, who scored 2 goals in that game, will start up-front.
Apollon Limassol will be looking towards winger Ioannis Pittas and French forward Bagaliy Dabo for their goals, with the pair scoring 19 goals between them in the Cypriot First Division last season.
We expect to see the trend continue for Maccabi Haifa at home in the Champions League and for both teams to score in this match. Apollon Limassol proved tough to beat in domestic action towards the end of last season and could leave Israel with a draw.
Home team
Away team
Pred
Correct score
Avg. goals
Weather conditions
Coef.
Score
Live
coef.
UCL
404317
X
1 - 1
2.49
28°
3.75
1.60
3.75
5.50
no
no
no
4 - 0(1 - 0)
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