Qarabag vs Samtredia Qualifier Predictions 11/07/2017

The Match Is Over. Score: 5-0

Qarabag vs Samtredia Match Preview:

Azerbaijan Premier League champions Qarabag face off against Erovnuli Liga first-time crowned champions Samtredia as the Georgian club will make their European debut on Tuesday, 11 July, when will try to keep things alive for the second-leg in Georgia, with the Azerbaijan club being much experienced at this point.

Match status: Champions League - Qualifying - Quarter-finals
Kick-off: Tuesday 11 Jul 2017, 06:00pm GMT
Venue: "Tofiq Bahramov Stadium" in Baku, Azerbaijan

Team News and Match Preview:

Qarabag did not fail to defend their deserved 4th back-to-back title after finishing top with 10 points clear of the runner-ups Gabala, having more firmly secured the driving seat in the Azerbaijan Premier League. Despite a new season of the Azerbaijan top tier starting later in August, Gurban Gurbano's men look favourites ahead of the tie to Samtredia.

While the renewed Erovnuli Liga season is on the run, a Samtredia side can now boast the third spot but it is not even near the site they finished at when the Samtredia club secured a Champions League second qualifying round promotion for the first time in the club's history back in 2016.

Provided that Samtredia have been maintaining the contention heating up in the Georgian league, it could help get benefits from that, as Qarabag have just started out their pre-season in preparation for the 2017/18 campaign. Nonetheless, it seems firm that the level both of the sides play at can hardly compare given the Georgia team's UCL debut will be specifically the forthcoming match in Azerbaijan.

With that and Qarabag's decent record 33 European games under Gurban Gurbanov, who has been in charge of The Horsemen since 2008, with an average of around 35% win percentage in mind, the experience must be crucial for the first leg in the 31,200-seat "Tofig Bahramov Stadium" and the tie as a whole. So, we'll be backing a smooth 3-0 home victory for Qarabag side.