There were some changes within the Ajax's roster during the summer. Coach Erik ten Hag no longer can count on services of Matthijs de Ligt who made a move to Juventus and Frankie de Jong who joined Barcelona. There are some replacements and newcomers to Amsterdam Arena. Alvarez and Razvan Marin are the two biggest summer acquisitions. Ajax was tipped to get into the Champions League group stages easily, but it's been a rocky road for them so far. The first opponent was the champion of Greece. After two spectacular games, the Dutch side advanced with a 5-4 victory on aggregate. Dusan Tadic has played a key role in eliminating the Greeks. His presence in the first match against Apoel Nicosia was not so noticeable though. Ajax has dominated with possession and created a couple of goal opportunities. Still, that 1st leg has ended without goals. Hosts had their chances in the last fifteen minutes too. Ajax's Mazraoui was sent off in the 78th minute and that could have been a costly red card.
Hakim Ziyech and David Neres should represent the biggest danger for the Cypriot defenders this Wednesday. One of the potential advantages for Ajax could be the fact their domestic division started three weeks ago. The reigning champions had a perfect start, having won two out of three encounters. Ajax is sitting at the top with +8 goal difference. In terms of the odds for this clash, bookies are heavily backing the Dutch heavy-weights. Apoel were in a bad spot going into the 2nd leg once this season. They have lost the home ground to Qarabag in the previous round 2-1 and were given a small chance to pull a comeback. They have done it in style, winning the second match 2-0, so no one should really underestimate them. Experts at betting tips leading UK website believe Ajax will eventually made it through.
The second most interesting playoffs match on Wednesday night is taking place in Belgium. Club Brugge are hoping to claim another group stage appearance in front of the home crowd against the Austrian representative LASK Linz. Austrians have underperformed last week at their venue and lost the match 1-0. Considering that result, their experience in playing bit matches and quality of Brugge, this is going to be a hard expedition. Hosts are warm favorites to win the match in 90 minutes at 1.80 rates, while chances for LASK to do the same are at 4.50. This is the first time for this Austrian side to compete in the UCL. They have caused a massive upset by eliminating Basel in the previous round. Can they do it again? Brugge had a lot of issues to keep a clean sheet in the last couple of months, but it seems like they improved in that segment lately. Club Brugge have kept four clean sheets in the last five encounters across competitions. They could also have an advantage when it comes to fitness. Domestic First Division A clash against Charleroi was canceled just so black and blues can rest and secure another Champions League appearance. The last time they have done that was last year. Brugge collected six points in a tough group with Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and AS Monaco, but still didn't make it to the playoffs. LASK ended the last Austrian Bundesliga campaign in solid 2nd place behind Salzburg.
Slavia Prague has been absent from UCL group stages for a very long time. Now, they have a huge chance to secure it in front of the home crowd. They have defeated CFR Cluj in the 1st leg last week 1-0, so many believe the second is going to be a pure formality.
Red Star Belgrade have also returned home with a good result. They faced champions of Switzerland, Young Boys and the 1st leg result was 2-2.
Dinamo Zagreb shouldn't have any troubles to eliminate Rosenborg after dismantling them in the first match. The same goes for Olympiakos Piraeus against Krasnodar.