The first qualifying round of the 2023/24 Champions League begins this week, including the meeting between Lincoln Red Imps and Qarabağ.
The game will be played on the 11th of July at the Victoria Stadium and the hosts are aiming to reach the group stages for the first time in their history.
2 days left ⚽️The grind doesn’t stop as we prepare for our #UCL 1QR first-leg tie against @FKQarabagh next Tuesday 👹🎟️ https://t.co/2AhANqfnuWCome down to the Victoria Stadium and show your support 🙌 pic.twitter.com/45B9lKmgji— Lincoln Red Imps FC (@LincolnRedImps) July 9, 2023
2 days left ⚽️The grind doesn’t stop as we prepare for our #UCL 1QR first-leg tie against @FKQarabagh next Tuesday 👹🎟️ https://t.co/2AhANqfnuWCome down to the Victoria Stadium and show your support 🙌 pic.twitter.com/45B9lKmgji
Lincoln Red Imps come into the match having not played competitively since the end of April. They lost the Rock Cup final via a penalty shootout against Magpies.
With the score 1-1 at full-time, it was Magpies who were superior from the penalty spot to win the trophy.
The defeat to Magpies means Lincoln Red Imps have lost their 2 most recent competitive fixtures having been defeated by Europa on the final day of the Gibraltar Premier Division.
Lincoln Red Imps had a player sent off early in the game and conceded the decisive goal in the 92nd minute from the penalty spot.
Trends show Lincoln Red Imps have lost 3 of their 4 most recent matches in the Champions League.
They did manage to beat Shkupi 2-0 at home last season but they lost the away leg 3-0 so were eliminated from the competition.
There were also defeats home and away against CFR Cluj of Romania. However, Lincoln Red Imps have won 4 of their last 6 home games in the Champions League, including a 1-0 win over Celtic in 2016.
Qarabağ travel to the Victoria Stadium on the back of a friendly match at home against CSKA Sofia of Bulgaria last week. Qarabağ won the game 1-0 having scored the only goal of the match on the stroke of half-time.
However, it is the only victory from their 3 friendly fixtures heading into his match. Qarabağ lost 2-0 away to Legia Warsaw and were held to a 3-3 draw at home by Ferencvaros.
In terms of the Champions League, Qarabağ have been tough to beat in recent games and they have lost only 1 of their 7 most recent fixtures in the competition.
However, they have recorded just a single victory from their 5 most recent Champions League matches and that came away to Ferencvaros last season.
Away form in the Champions League shows Qarabağ are undefeated in 8 of their last 10 games.
Team news and Lincoln Red Imps could start with striker Dylan Peacock in attack and will have the experienced 40 year old Roy Chipolina in central defence.
Qarabağ can call upon new Brazilian winger Juninho who was recently singed from Portuguese football. Forward Hamidou Keyta could also make his debut in attack for the visitors.
Lincoln Red Imps can make it tricky for opponents on their own ground and this will not be easy for Qarabağ.
However, we expect the Azerbaijan Premier League champions to be the stronger team and they could away with a narrow one goal victory ahead of the second leg.