“The opponent is not an unbeatable team. They showed their weaknesses in the match in Baku.”
Idman.biz reports that veteran footballer Aslan Karimov said this in an interview with Teleqraf, commenting on the upcoming UEFA Europa League first qualifying round second leg match between Slovenia’s Celje and Azerbaijan’s Sabah.
The 52-year-old expert first shared his opinion on the first match in Baku, where Masazir’s team lost 2-3.
According to him, the fair result of the first game would have been a draw: “The first match could have ended 2-2 as a draw. The goal we conceded in the last minute made our task a bit harder. They will play against a strong opponent. Especially in midfield and building play from the back, under the guidance of Spanish coach Albert Riera, Celje does very well. You could say they manage to create superiority in midfield. This is where Sabah started to have problems in the first game. Because by creating superiority in the middle of the pitch, they were able to attack Sabah’s defense with more players and greater force. From these attacks, they had enough players who could turn these opportunities into goals.”
Karimov emphasized that the Sabah have good chances to advance: “At least set pieces are opportunities for us. Also, our wing players can impact the opponent’s defense line. They outrun the defense in terms of speed, which gives us an advantage. Inevitably, Celje will have to play more offensively at home and attack more. In that case, gaps will appear in defense that the Sabah can exploit. A one-goal difference is not too big, a comeback is possible.”
The experienced expert gave a lower chance for Sabah against the Slovenian side: “Overall, if we consider the teams’ potentials, Celje is still the favorite. At least they will start the match with a one-goal advantage. I think the chances are 55/45 in favor of Celje. But this is not a decisive problem. In such games, Sabah has a 100% chance to score. But for that, they need to press a lot, play aggressively, especially in defense, in the middle of the field, and among attacking players when the opponent is building combinations. I don’t know how they will manage this. If they do, they can leave this game with a victory.”
The Sabah – Celje match will be held at the stadium of the same name. The game, refereed by a Bulgarian referee team, will kick off at 22:00 Baku time.
Idman.biz
