“Even before yesterday’s match, the general opinion was that ‘Qarabag’ is stronger than ‘Shkendija’ and would outperform their opponent over two legs.”
According to Idman.biz, this is what former coach of the Azerbaijani national team Arif Asadov said in an interview with Spor24.az.
The experienced specialist shared his thoughts on the Azerbaijani champion’s 1–0 away victory against North Macedonia’s “Shkendija” in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round: “The first match showed that the Agdam side is superior in every aspect. Our representative demonstrated good football in the first half. The opponent is a disciplined team. However, a lack of player quality is noticeable, especially in the attacking phase. It’s evident that they are wary of ‘Qarabag’. In the second half, they couldn’t commit many players forward in attack. I believe ‘Qarabag’ has already secured 70 percent of their qualification to the next round. Next week, on home turf, they need to approach the match seriously from the very first minute and aim to settle the outcome in the first half. In my opinion, ‘Qarabag’ has already booked their place in the next round.”
The return match will take place on August 12 in Baku.
Idman.biz
