Crvena Zvezda – Lincoln Red Imps

The Serbian champion will crush his opponent in the return match.

Before the starting match of the confrontation between Serbian Crvena Zvezda and Gibraltarian Lincoln Red Imps, this pair of opponents seemed the most uneven among all in the second stage of qualification for the elite European tournament. The Serbian club had played respectively in the group stage and the overall stage of the Champions League for the previous two seasons, which left the tiny nation's opponent completely unfazed. Lincoln themselves had started qualification from its first round for the fifth consecutive year as the champions of Gibraltar. Last season the team also overcame the first stage, winning against Hamrun, but were subsequently eliminated after each of the next three confrontations: in the Champions League by Qarabağ, in the Europa League by Dynamo Minsk, and in the Conference League by Larne. Lincoln lost the first match of the current round of the strongest football tournament in Europe with dignity. Bookmakers expected a three-goal win for Crvena Zvezda, but the Serbian champions managed to score only one goal. However, after Bruno Duarte's accurate shot in the middle of the first half, the Serbs were reduced to ten men, which forced them to cede ball possession and part of the initiative to their opponent. The bookmakers declared the home team the favourites for the return leg, offering odds of 1.04 on their victory. After a rather unconvincing away match in Gibraltar, Crvena Zvezda had a grand outing in the national championship. In the second round, the national champions demolished OFK Belgrade, scoring seven goals against them - 7:1. Considering that this victory on Serbian soil followed a drubbing of Javor Ivanjica with a score of 4:0, Crvena Zvezda topped the league table with an impressive goal difference of 11:1. Lincoln began the first stage of Champions League qualification with a win over Faroese Vikingur. The first half of the away match recorded the final score on the scoreboard in favour of Red Imps - 3:2. At their own venue, Lincoln won again, scoring the only goal in the 90+6 minute. It is extremely difficult to play in Serbia even for Europe's top clubs. In the past couple of years, even Liverpool has lost here! Let's bet that Crvena Zvezda will crush their 'inexperienced' opponent at the Marakana.