Crvena Zvezda – Pafos

The champion of Serbia will defeat his opponent at the Belgrade arena.

Crvena Zvezda is one step away from a third consecutive main round of the Champions League. Naturally, such results allow the Belgrade club to be successful in every sense and to continue dominating Serbian football. In last year's playoff for the right to compete in the group stage of the Champions League, Crvena Zvezda faced Bodo/Glimt, which they overcame thanks to a more confident home victory. Following that, the Norwegian club reached the semi-finals of the Europa League, delivering their best European season in history. Crvena Zvezda for its part, secured two victories in the group stage and surpassed seven other clubs in the standings. Paphos made their European debut last season and immediately reached the Round of 16 in the Conference League. Following the past Cypriot championship, the club became champions for the first time in history, indicating a tendency for increasing their level. Bookmakers have made the hosts the favourites for the upcoming match, offering odds of 1.65 for their victory. Crvena Zvezda won the Serbian championship for the eighth consecutive time last season, achieving a significant lead over second place. In the current national league campaign, the capital team has won all four of their matches, averaging four goals per game against their opponents. The upcoming qualifying round of the Champions League will be the third for the Serbian champions. In the first round, they comfortably defeated Lincoln Red Imps, winning with an aggregate score of 6:1. The Serbs also had no problems with Polish side Lech. On the road, Crvena Zvezda won 3:1, and at home, they simply brought the rivalry to a logical conclusion—1:1. Paphos can already consider their first foray into the Champions League a success. The draw in the first leg of the second round of qualifying against Maccabi Tel Aviv did not foreshadow future successes for the Cypriots. However, in the nominal guest status, they initially defeated the Israeli team, and in the next qualifying stage, they dealt with Dynamo Kyiv in both matches. It's worth noting that despite the efforts of the Cypriot champions, they had not played on opponent's grounds in the previous qualifying rounds. This time, it will not just be an opponent's field, but a real hell for the visiting players—the Belgrade 'Marakana'. Let’s place a bet that Crvena Zvezda will win the first match.