On Tuesday evening, Ludogorets hosts Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League third qualifying round first leg, as both teams eye a lead to take into the return fixture.
The Bulgarian team heads into this clash in slightly inconsistent form, despite making a good start to their domestic campaign. They are currently top of the Bulgarian top-flight table. However, a 5-0 win over Spartak Varna last time out ended a short two-game winless run.
In their previous outing, Ludogorets suffered a 2-1 defeat at Shamrock Rovers in this competition. However, a 3-0 win in the home leg saw them defeat the Irish team 4-2 on aggregate and set up this tie.
The loss against Shamrock ended a four-game winning streak for Ludogorets in the competition. The defeat also ended a run of three straight clean sheets in the Champions League for the Bulgarian outfit.
Ludogorets have been strong on home soil of late in the competition, as they are currently on a run of six straight home wins in the Champions League.
Like their hosts, Dinamo Zagreb currently sit top of their domestic table, having won all three of their league games so far this season. A 4-1 home win over Istra 1961 last time out was their third straight win in all competitions.
The team from Croatia are also unbeaten in 12 competitive games, 15 matches unbeaten if you count their three undefeated pre-season-friendly games.
Dinamo Zagreb’s recent record in the Champions League is not a great one, as a win at Shkupi last time ended a three-game winless run in European football’s elite competition. However, the win was enough to see Dinamo record a 3-2 aggregate win over the Macedonians.
Forebet predicts that Ludogorets will record a narrow victory in a low-scoring encounter to keep the tie wide open, heading into next week's second leg.