The UEFA Champions League Play-off round is the final hurdle before the group stage. The Wednesday night matchups will see the Turkish club Basaksehir playing hosts to the Spanish club Sevilla, and will look to the story of David and Goliath for some inspiration. At the same time, Scottish Champions Celtic will welcome Kazakhstan Champions Astana, looking to get one step ahead in the two legged match up.
BASAKSEHIR (TUR) vs. SEVILLA (ESP)
Three-way: 1: Basaeksehir +250; X: +245 Draw; 2: Sevilla +129
Spread +0.5: Basaksehir -137; Sevilla +125
Total +2.5: Over +108; Under -109
BASAKSEHIR
Basaksehir had a good season last year, as they were able to challenge Turkish Big boys Besiktas for much of the season. In the end, they missed out on the title by just four points. However, they earned plenty of plaudits on the way for their performances, most notably their defense. The club had the best defense in the league, as they conceded just 28 goals in 34 matches. They were also decent going forward, as they managed to score 63 goals throughout the league campaign. They started their 2017-18 league campaign with a 1:0 home win in the league against Bursaspor.
They have signed Birmingham winger Kerim Frei for a sum of 1.35 million Euros. Along with him, they have also signed Dutch winger Eljero Elia and Turkish forward Atabey Cicek for 900k Euros each. They have made a lot of free signings, out of which the main has to be Gael Clichy, who brings in loads of experience from his premier league days after he was released from Manchester City. Joining him on the list of free transfers is Swiss midfielder Gokhan Inler and Cameroonian defender Aurelian Chedjou.
As they finished 2nd in the league, they started straight away from the third round of the Champions League qualifiers. They went up against Club Brugge, who was a respectable opponent themselves. The first leg, which was an away one, ended 3:3, giving Basaksehir three important away goals. The home round was a more comfortable match, as they won 2:0, and hence qualified for the Champions League playoffs.
New signing Aurelian Chedjou has a fractured foot and will be out for almost half of the season. Egemen Kormaz and Mehmet Batdal will also miss the match probably, as they are lacking match fitness.
SEVILLA
Sevilla had another impressive season last year, although a dip in form last year meant that they lost out the third spot to Atletico, and hence now have to go through the Champions League playoffs. Just like their league position, they were the fourth best in both attack and defense. They scored 69 goals during the league season while conceding 49 goals in the same 38 matches. This showed that they still have room for improvement, especially in the defense section. Under newly appointed manager Eduardo Berizzo, the club will be looking to challenge the top spots in the league and in European events again.
They have been very active in the transfer markets including both arrivals and departures. They have bought Luis Muriel from Sampdoria for €18 million, while bringing back former player Jesus Navas from Manchester City, along with Nolito to Spain. Navas has joined on a free transfer, while Nolita has joined on a deal worth 8.1 million Euros. To boost the defensive side of their team, they have signed Simon Kjaer from Fener for €11 million and bought Argentine midfielders Banega and Guido Pizarro for €8 million and €5.5 million.
Sevilla took part in five pre season friendly matches, including the Emirates Cup at Arsenal. Out of those five matches, they won three, drew one, and lost one. During this period, they scored seven goals, while conceding six. These stats point out to a leaky defense and the fact that the attack hasn’t really clicked so far.
Their only injury concern currently is the center back Daniel Carrico, who is out with a Hamstring Injury since the end of last season, and may not be back in time for the match.
BASAKSEHIR (TUR) vs. SEVILLA (ESP) – Match Prediction:
Looking at the Sevilla team, one would say their preseason suggests that they haven’t really been up to their usual standards. However, it must be noted that there has been a massive change in the dressing room, and many new players have joined the team, therefore it will certainly take some time for them to adjust. Basaksehir is a decent squad and has it in them to cause problems for the Sevilla squad. However, I feel that the Spanish club will manage to pull an away win in this first leg Champions League match.
MY PICK: SEVILLA to win (+125)
CELTIC (SCO) vs. FC ASTANA (KAZ)
Three-way: 1: Celtic -222; X: +375 Draw; 2: Astana +890
Spread -1.5: Celtic +133; Astana -130
Total +2.5: Over +106; Under -106
CELTIC
Like it has been for most seasons in recent memory, Celtic took home the Scottish Premiership trophy last year. What was impressive was that Brendan Rodgers side did that with zero defeats, bringing back memories of Arsenal’s and Juventus’ unbeaten league wins. Of course, the league competition is much weaker than the EPL or the Serie A, but it is a massive achievement. Their attack was in absolutely battering form, led by young French Striker Moussa Dembele, as they scored a massive 106 goals in 38 league matches. The defense also put up good performances, as they managed to concede the lowest goals in the league, with 25 goals conceded.
They haven’t made many signings so far in the transfer window and looking at the squad, they do not need many changes after all. They have brought in highly rated Manchester City midfielder Olivier Ntcham for a sum of 4.5 million Euros while bringing Ipswich youngster Kundai Benyu on a free transfer. Johny Hayes has also joined the champions from Aberdeen for an undisclosed fee.
In the previous two Champions League qualifying rounds, Celtic has efficiently knocked out their competition. In the second round, they were up against Linfield. The Scottish champions won 0:2 away, followed by a 4:0 drubbing of Linfield at home. In the next round of the Champions League qualifications, they were against a better team in Rosenberg, as they drew the first match 0:0 at home, which was followed by an efficient 0:1 win away.
Celtic is currently under a small crisis as they are facing a shortage of personnel in defense. Centre back Dedryck Boyota and Erik Sviatchenko are both out due to a knee injury and will be out for at least a month. Joining them is the right back Cristian Gamboa, who got injured in the preseason, and might just make an appearance in the match; unlike star forward Moussa Dembele, who is out with a Hamstring Injury.
FC ASTANA
Astana has continued their dominance of the Premier Liga in Kazakhstan, as they finished champions in 2017 while having a current margin of seven points in front of Kairat who are second. Like one would expect, they had the best defense and the best attack. They have scored a total of 50 goals in 23 league matches while conceding just 14. The club would be looking to add to their league domination under coach Stanimir Stoilov for the next season, and are looking forward to qualification to the Champions League group stages, which won’t be as easy as their league matches.
Astana has battled their way to the playoff rounds, and have shown plenty of grit and determination. In the second round, from where they started, they were up against Spartaks Jurmala, against whom they won 0:1 in the away leg while drawing the home leg by 1:1. In the next round, they were up against Legia Warsawa and pulled a minor upset by winning 3:1 in the home leg, even though they lost 1:0 in the away leg.
Their only summer arrival this season has been midfielder Laszlo Kleinheisler, who has joined on a season long loan from Werder Bremen.
Astana will be without two of their full backs for this playoff clash. Right back Igor Shitov, and left back Dmitri Shomko are both out with red card suspensions.
CELTIC (SCO) vs. FC ASTANA (KAZ) – Match Prediction:
Both the teams have shown impressive traits like determination and efficiency while progressing to this round. Celtic is currently under a shortage of defensive options, and Astana will also be missing their first choice full backs, which makes the game all the more interesting.
However, Celtic still possesses a lot of quality and can score ample goals, even in the absence of their star striker Dembele, and hence, are more likely to win this match. So, my prediction will be a high scoring home win for the Celtic team.
MY PICK: Celtic AH -1.5 (+133)
Additional Pick: Over 2.5 goals (+106)
