Juventus vs Maccabi Haifa prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2022-10-04 19:00.
For the first time ever, Juventus have lost their opening two matches in a UEFA Champions League (UCL) group stage meaning victory against Maccabi Haifa now seems non-negotiable. A 3-0 Serie A victory over Bologna at the weekend was at least a good rehearsal for this crucial game, snapping a five-game winless run (D2, L3) which included that pair of 2-1 UCL defeats.
The Italian giants’ latest UCL loss saw Benfica become just the seventh side across Juve’s last 51 UCL home games to leave victorious (W32, D12), which could indicate that result was merely an anomaly. However the fact remains they’ve now recorded three successive UCL defeats at all venues, and if they follow those up with a fourth in this game for the first time in history, that would all but consign Juventus to missing out on the UCL knockout stages for the first time since 2013/14.
Maccabi Haifa come into this clash in much similar fashion to Juventus, as they’re still without a point in the UCL this term but also managed a 2-0 league win at the weekend against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Haifa are flying the Israeli flag in the UCL this season as the first contestant from Israel since Tel Aviv in 2015/16, but points here appear a must if they have visions of progression or even dropping into the UEFA Europa League.
An even record in Italy (W1, D1, L1) perhaps provides some hope that Maccabi can at least notch a UCL point this campaign at the third time of asking. However, with a 4-0 victory in UCL qualification against Olympiacos serving as Haifa’s only victory across their last nine European away games (D2, L6), perhaps the reverse fixture next week is a more realistic opportunity to clock up some points.
Players to watch: Watch out for a fast Arkadiusz Milik start as two of his last three Juventus goals arrived inside the opening ten minutes. Having scored in their last UCL outing against PSG (L 3-1), Tjaronn Chery could become only the third Maccabi Haifa player in history to score in successive UCL proper games.
Hot stat: Maccabi Haifa have lost their last eight UCL group stage games by an aggregate 13-1 scoreline.