Sparta Prague (Cze) vs Malmo FF (Swe) prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Qualification betting tips on match 2024-08-26 19:00.
[p]It has been 19 long years since Sparta Prague last qualified for the main draw of the UEFA Champions League (UCL), but the Czech champions are well positioned to finally end that drought. A 2-0 win over Malmö in the first leg of their play-off last week puts Sparta on the brink, so they could be forgiven for dropping their first two points of the league season at the weekend when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Slovácko.[/p]
[p]Lars Friis’ men remain top of the table after six matches (W5, D1), and a repeat of that result from the weekend would be enough to see them advance as they return to the Czech capital. Friis may have some work to do on his side’s defending if he’s to avoid a nervous night here though, as both sides have scored in eight of their 11 competitive matches this term (W9, D2), including both home UCL fixtures (W1, D1).[/p]
[p]Malmö won’t go down without a fight, and they’ve already displayed their ‘never say die’ attitude in this competition by scoring a 97th minute equaliser and an extra-time winner against PAOK in the third qualifying round. Their chances here are significantly hindered by the recent departure of winger Sebastian Nanasi, whose €11m move to Strasbourg weakens the Swedish champions ahead of this crunch tie.[/p]
[p]That transfer may help balance the books too should Malmö miss out on the UCL proper, as they’ve only reached the main draw once since 2015/16! A 2-2 draw against relegation-threatened Kalmar at the weekend was hardly the ideal warm-up, as it continued a downturn in their form of late, with their last eight matches producing just two wins inside 90 minutes (D3, L3).[/p]
[p]Players to watch: Veljko Birmančević has already scored six goals in his ten appearances this season, while he also registered assists in Sparta’s last three UCL matches. Erik Botheim opened the scoring for Malmö at the weekend, maintaining a run that’s seen six of his last seven goals arrive before the break.[/p]
[p]Hot stat: There have been goals in both halves in nine of Sparta’s 11 matches this term.[/p]
[p][i]Written by Tomáš Vlasák[/i][/p]