Linfield will take on Zurich in the first leg UEFA Europa League qualifying semifinals. The match will take place at Windsor Park (Belfast) on Thursday, August 4. The league in Northern Ireland football is led by
Linefield. She won the 1st place dispute against Cliftonville last season, which enabled her to return to the Champions League. The Blues defeated the first opponent in dramatic overtime at home and eliminated the New Saints. The team then ran into Bodo/Glimt and it seemed like a verdict. They beat the Norwegians home, but that was not what happened. Even though the Scandinavians should have won, the score was still 1-0. The game didn’t go as planned. The “yellow hoard” simply swept their opponent off the field. Vetlesen scored the first goal in the 7th minute. They scored three more goals in the second half. The final score was humiliatingly 8-0. But “Linfield”, accomplished their task in the Champions League. They will now try to do the same in a more simple tournament. Last season,
Zürich was an unexpected success. The team won the final to take the 1st spot, beating the favorites! The Champions League qualification was then automatically won by the team. The Swiss didn’t stay long. Qarabag, a skilled opponent, was their next opponent. Vaji’s double helped the Azerbaijanis win at home 3-2. Zurich could still transfer the match to overtime at home. The visitors responded to Medvedev’s goal but fell just short of the whistle. On the 95th Santini, a score of 2-1 was recorded. Ovusu scored the only goal, but that was just in extra time. Franco Foda was crowned champion of Azerbaijan and went on to win the Europa League. The German team lost in the Super Cup, and the Super League was a disappointing start for them. The coach didn’t expect such a debut and moved to Switzerland.
Linefield is rarely in European competition. Zurich does not play there often. It is therefore not surprising that this will mark the first meeting between the teams. Bookmakers don’t believe Linfield will surprise them any more. Zurich isn’t shining yet so we take neutral “total below 3.0”.
Prediction: Goals scored below 3.0
