It’s crunch time in this year’s UEFA Champions League qualifying. There are 20 teams left standing and they’re fighting for the final 10 spots in the Champions League group stage. The first legs of the pivotal play-off round begin on Aug. 18 and 19, with big names like Manchester United and Valencia looking to secure their place among Europe’s elite.
In this Champions League update, we’ll give a succinct rundown of exactly which part of the competition we’re currently in, before taking a look at the top matchups of the round. Meanwhile, click here for our preview of the upcoming Spanish La Liga season.
[sc:Soccer ]2015-16 UEFA Champions League Play-off Update
Where We’re At
The play-off round is the fourth and final tier of UEFA Champions League qualifying. The earlier rounds were contested by unknown champions of European minnows, so the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich – who’ve all qualified already – aren’t in action just yet. But in this round, a few more recognizable names are now in the picture.
[sc:Soccer240banner ]The round is split into two separate sections: the Champions Route (for the league champions of lesser European nations that survived the earlier rounds of qualifying) and League Route (for the non-champion qualifiers of the more established European leagues).
Each section is composed of five matchups each, with the winners of the 10 matchups over two legs advancing to the group stage.
The first legs will be played on 18 and 19 August, and the second legs will be played on 25 and 26 August 2015. Here’s a rundown of all 10 matchups.
Champions Route
Astana vs. APOEL (Aug. 18 and 26)
Skenderbeu vs. Dinamo Zagreb (Aug. 19 and 25)
Celtic vs. Malmo (Aug. 19 and 25)
Basel vs. Maccabi Tel-Aviv (Aug. 19 and 25)
BATE Borisov vs. Partizan Belgrade (Aug. 18 and 26)
League Route
Lazio vs. Leverkusen (Aug. 18 and 26)
Manchester United vs. Club Brugge (Aug. 18 and 26)
Sporting CP vs. CSKA Moscow (Aug. 18 and 26)
Rapid Vienna vs. Shakhtar Donetsk (Aug. 19 and 25)
Valencia vs. Monaco (Aug. 19 and 25)
Matchups of the Round
Undoubtedly the most eye-catching matchups among those 10 are Lazio vs. Leverkusen, Manchester United vs. Club Brugge and Valencia vs. Monaco. Let’s get into some more detail about those respective matchups.
Lazio vs. Leverkusen
Lazio had a terrific campaign last season, finishing third in the Italian Serie A to earn their best shot of making it back to the Champions League group stage since 2007.
The Rome-based club kept hold of last year’s breakout star, Felipe Anderson (10 goals, seven assists), as well as Italian international Antonio Candreva (10 goals, nine assists) this summer, but they lost veteran Stefano Mauri (nine goals) and failed to add anyone of significance to their squad.
Meanwhile, Leverkusen managed a fourth-place finish in their first season under manager Roger Schmidt. Leverkusen, who adopted Schmidt’s fast-paced system, possess an army of exciting young midfielders (Heung-Min Son, Hakan Calhanoglu and Karim Bellarabi to name three). They also added the Chilean Charles Aranguiz, who is used to playing a similar system with his national team.
Anderson and Candreva have the ability to turn a leg in Lazio’s favor, but Leverkusen will be tough to topple over two legs. The Germans reached the last 16 of last year’s Champions League, and it would be quite an upset if they failed to reach the group stage this time around.
Writer’s Prediction
Leverkusen goes through 3-1 on aggregate.
Manchester United vs. Club Brugge
After missing out on the Champions League for the first time since 1994, three-time European champions Manchester United will look to return to their rightful place among Europe’s elite. Led by Louis van Gaal, United have assembled a very talented (and expensive) squad that has the potential to be a Champions League sleeper. But first, they need to get past Club Brugge.
Brugge, who haven’t reached the group stage in a decade, overcame a 2-1 first leg deficit to beat Panathanaikos 3-0 in the third qualifying round to advance to the play-off. The Belgian club has no household names in its squad, but it does have youth and the element of surprise on its side.
United have so much quality in their squad, though, that even a second-string United side should be able to handle their business quite comfortably over two legs against the Belgians.
Writer’s Prediction
Manchester United makes short work of Brugge with a 4-0 aggregate win.
Valencia vs. Monaco
Once perennial Champions League group stage participants, Valencia will look to end their two-year absence in the competition this time around. Los Che have invested heavily in their squad in order to make a strong European push, with Champions League veteran Alvaro Negrado one of their top buys. Their relatively inexperienced squad will be put to the test against last season’s quarterfinalists.
Monaco, though, will be without Geoffrey Kondogbia and Yannick Ferreira Carrasco, two of their top contributors to last year’s surprising run to the last eight. They’ve reinvested the money from those sales on a lot of youth that could pay off handsomely in the near future, but probably not early enough to help start another Champions League campaign this year.
Writer’s Prediction
Monaco make it tough, but Valencia ultimately emerge victorious, 2-1 on aggregate. Create a betting account now and get ready for another season of the best soccer Europe has to offer.
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