AZ Alkmaar and Viktoria Plzen set for stalemate in Champions League
AZ Alkmaar vs Viktoria Plzen - 26/08/2020
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The Champions League second qualifying round kicks off this week with a peach of a match between Netherlands club AZ Alkmaar and Czech Republic side Viktoria Plzen.
AZ Alkmaar head into the game having not played a competitive football match since March. Unlike other leagues around Europe, the Eredivisie cancelled the season.
It was a terrible result for the Cheeseheads as had the season been allowed to continue, they may have overcome Ajax for the Dutch title. The teams finished level on points instead with AZ Alkmaar now needing to battle through the qualifying rounds of the Champions League.
Viktoria Plzen also finished their domestic season in second place. However, unlike the Eredivisie, the Czech top flight resumed to finish during the summer months.
The Czech club are already back playing domestically as well. The 2020-21 Czech Republic league season kicked off on August 21st. Viktoria Plzen’s first match of the season ended in a 3-1 win versus Opava.
AZ Alkmaar may not start the new Dutch domestic season until later this month, but they have played a few high-profile friendlies. The Cheeseheads played Utrecht, PEC Zwolle, Lille and Monaco in friendlies. However, just one of those exhibition matches – versus Lille – ended in a win.
One of the big news items heading into Wednesday night’s game is AZ Alkmaar’s players attracting interest from other clubs. Most notable is the interest winger Calvin Stengs is getting from Barcelona and their new manager Ronald Koeman.
Stengs is certainly one to watch on Wednesday night. He scored 10 goals and tallied 12 assists in 42 games in all competitions last term.
Viktoria Plzen forward Jean-David Beauguel scored seven goals last term in all competitions. He has already scored a goal this season as Viktoria Plzen defeated Opava to open the campaign. He could get on the scoresheet for the Czechs.
Arnie Slot’s AZ Alkmaar do have the shadow of six months off without competitive football. Their lack of sharpness could show early but potentially wear off as the game progresses. They have played some good teams in preseason and that should help the cause on Wednesday.
The game should see a low total of goals as neither team get up to Champions League speed. The second qualifying round games are all one-off fixtures.
A lot is riding on the game and due to the pressure, it should cause the match between AZ Alkmaar and Viktoria Plzen to be low scoring and end in a stalemate. Expect under 2.5 goals as these teams struggle to find the back of the net.
Home team
Away team
Pred
Correct score
Avg. goals
Weather conditions
Coef.
Score
Live
coef.
UCL
363826
X
0 - 0
1.82
17°
3.64
1.87
3.64
4.10
-1
1
1
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