AEK Athens FC (Gre) vs D. Zagreb (Cro) prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Qualification betting tips on match 2023-08-07 18:45.
With participation in the illustrious UEFA Champions League (UCL) the eventual goal, this third-round qualification tie between Greek league and cup champions AEK Athens and Croatian league champions Dinamo Zagreb has all the makings of an all-out war. The Greeks, aiming to secure a first appearance in the UCL group stages since 2018/19, will host the first leg knowing how important travelling back to Croatia with a lead could be.
Key to AEK’s success could be whether they can pick up from where they left off last season, as losing only once in their last 12 matches (W8, D3) proves they’re a side not to be taken lightly. The Yellow-blacks also have a successful record against Croatian sides to call upon if need be, as losing only once in eight encounters (W6, D1) could be part of manager MatĂas Almeyda’s pre-game motivational speech.
As fate would have it, that sole loss happened to have come against Dinamo, whose success against Greek opposition just about ends there as they’ve won just one other of their 12 previous such encounters (D2, L8). This Igor Bišćan-led Dinamo team will be gunning to put a dent in that record though, especially considering how good they looked when sweeping aside Kazakh champions FC Astana 6-0 on aggregate in the last qualifying round.
The Citizens hold the physical advantage of being six games into their season already and have picked up where they left off last season by losing only once in their last 15 matches (W10, D4). Transferring that form onto the European stage is now the ultimate goal, and the travelling fans will hope their team don’t show the continental jitters that plagued them last season, when they exited the UCL group stages with a rock-bottom finish.
Players to watch: AEK’s Levi GarcĂa and Dinamo’s Luka Ivanušec have proven their goals are worth their weight in gold for their clubs, with Garcia’s 16 goalscoring outings last season all ending in victory, while Ivanušec has stretched his unbeaten record when scoring to 27 (W24, D3).
Hot stat: Dinamo have been kept scoreless only three times in their last 32 UCL qualifiers.