Dinamo Zagreb take on Switzerland’s Young Boys on Tuesday night in the Champions League playoffs. The two sides finished square in the first leg in Bern.
The Croatian club obtained a valuable point against Young Boys and can advance to the Champions league group stage with a scoreless draw on Tuesday. Young Boys can overturn their away goal deficit with a goal. The only way the two sides could reach extra-time in the second leg is by way of a 1-1 draw. A score win would see Young Boys through to the group stage.
The second leg match is on a knife’s edge. Both teams will be cautious that a goal could sway the tie. Young Boys got off to an early start in the first leg. The Swiss team scored in just the second minute of play through Kevin Mbabu. Dinamo got the equaliser in the second half with a goal from Mislav Orsic. The draw gives Dinamo the edge and makes them the sportsbooks’ favourite going into the second leg.
Both clubs played at the weekend in their respective leagues. Dinamo edged NK Lokomotiva, 1-0, in a Zagreb derby. Meanwhile, Young Boys throttled Neuchatel Xamax 5-2. Although they won their domestic fixtures, Dinamo and Young Boys will have had their attention firmly fixed on Tuesday night’s match. Qualifying for the group stage is lucrative, and even though the loser will make the Europa League group stage, the Champions League is the prize.
Dinamo have already played five fixtures in Champions league qualifying. The Croatians started in the second qualifying round. In five matches, Dinamo have tallied 11 goals while conceding just three. Of course, Young Boys represent the most difficult opponent Dinamo have faced.
Young Boys have only just joined the qualifying stages of the Champions League in the playoff round. Prior to their tie with Dinamo, Young Boys had played five matches in the Swiss Super League and Swiss Cup. Young Boys had won all five fixtures and currently lead the Super League by seven points over nearest rivals FC Basel.
Young Boys must score a goal to have any hope of going through. Gerardo Seoane doesn’t have to throw all of his players into attack from the opening whistle. Down just a goal, Young Boys can play their normal style early on. However, if a goal doesn’t come, they will need to throw caution to the wind. Needing a goal late in the game will open up Young Boys to Dinamo’s attack.
The Croatians may get the goals they need to hold off Young Boys and qualify for the Champions league group stage.