The second qualifying round for the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League gets underway this week. On Tuesday, Lithuanian champions FK Zalgiris host Swedish champions Malmo FF.
The first leg will be held at Vilnius’ FF Stadium, with the second leg scheduled for the following Wednesday at Malmo’s Eleda Stadium.
Motståndarna vid avancemang till den tredje omgången av Champions League-kvalet:Vinnarna av Linfield FC (🇬🇧NIR) eller FK Bodø/Glimt (🇳🇴 NOR) pic.twitter.com/G9I5GQorFu— Malmö FF (@Malmo_FF) July 18, 2022
Motståndarna vid avancemang till den tredje omgången av Champions League-kvalet:Vinnarna av Linfield FC (🇬🇧NIR) eller FK Bodø/Glimt (🇳🇴 NOR) pic.twitter.com/G9I5GQorFu
In the first round, Zalgiris claimed a 2-1 aggregate victory over Kosovan side FC Ballkani. Meanwhile, secured a crazy 6-5 win against Icelandic outfit Vikingur Reykjavik.
Thanks to win and a draw against Ballkani, Zalgiris head into Tuesday’s clash on a six-game unbeaten streak across all competitions.
When you look at the bigger picture, the Lithuanian champions have only lost one of their last 22 outings – picking up 15 wins and six draws along the way.
Having lost just one of their 18 A Lyga games this season, Zalgiris find themselves two points clear at the summit of the Lithuanian top tier.
Not only do Zalgiris have the second-best offensive record in their domestic division, but they also have the second-best defensive record.
As for Malmo, they head into the first leg on the back of a 2-0 victory over Norrkoping – meaning they have now won four of their past five Allsvenskan game.
Although the likes of Djurgarden and Hacken sit above Malmo in the Swedish top flight, MFF are one of the league’s in-form teams.
Having dispatched Vikingur Reykjavik in the previous round, Malmo are currently enjoying a four-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
Better still, the Swedish champions have only lost one of their previous nine encounters – securing seven wins and one draw in the process.
Head-to-head: Funnily enough, Zalgiris and Malmo met during the 2015-16 Champions League qualification campaign.
The Swedish side advanced on that occasion, recording a goalless draw on home soil before winning 1-0 in Lithuania.
Team news: Zalgaris’ are injury-free at the moment. Their danger man is Brazilian forward Renan Oliveira, who has netted eight goals in 13 A Lyga games this season.
On the flip side, Malmo will be without Adi Nalic on Tuesday as the Bosnian midfielder continues to recover from a cruciate ligament rupture.
Forebet predicts an exciting clash between the two sides with over 2.5 goals scored and Malmö FF coming out with a narrow win.