Who will get the better start?

The first legs of the UEFA Champions League qualifying phase are on the agenda in the 3rd round. Meanwhile, the teams have high hopes of making it into the group stage in the end. Four games still lie ahead of the teams.

The Slovan Bratislava vs Maccabi Haifa prediction by bookmakers indicates a favourite role for the visitors. The team from Israel has individual advantages in one or the other position, which must also be exploited on the pitch.

But the roles are not completely clear. The home side also have chances of a decent result. Because the teams bring something offensively, our tip before the game Slovan Bratislava against Maccabi Haifa is that both clubs will come to score.

Slovan Bratislava – Statistics & current form

Slovan Bratislava is currently coached by the experienced coach Vladimir Weiss, whose son, also Vladimir Weiss, is one of the best and at the same time most famous players of his team. So much for this anecdote, otherwise the team also has a lot to offer, although it is not ideally staffed individually on one or the other position.

The hosts have played six competitive matches so far this season. Four of them ended in draws, Slovan Bratislava are still unbeaten. In the league, the team started with two draws, which put a damper on their own ambitions, namely to play for the title. In the qualification for the Champions League, curiously, both away games were won, while the home games ended in a draw.

The hosts have gone three of their last six matches without conceding a goal, although they have also conceded two goals twice. It is not easy to make sense of the first games. The Slovan Bratislava vs. Maccabi Haifa odds, however, show that the bookmakers are more likely to give the visitors a win.

Slovan Bratislava need a good day’s form

That’s exactly why it will be important for the home side to put in a good day’s form. The rhythm should slowly be there, also the automatisms have set in. In the pre-season, the Slovaks were particularly good at home, not losing a game in the league in the regular phase.

The last season showed that Slovan Bratislava have a lot to offer in the forward play. In the 22 league games of the regular season, they scored 47 goals, which meant an average of more than two goals per game. Currently, there is still some light and shade, but it is not inconceivable that things will fall into place quickly.

In the qualification phase, the hosts always scored anyway. Therefore, before the match Slovan Bratislava vs. Maccabi Haifa, our prediction is that both teams will score at least one goal.

Predicted line-up of Slovan Bratislava:
Borjan – Blackman, Wimmer, Voet, Vojtko – Licht, Tonic, Weiss – Barseghyan, Zmrhal, Cavric

Maccabi Haifa – Statistics & current form

Maccabi Haifa with coach Messay Dego have not yet started the new season in the Israeli league. Nevertheless, the team has already played five competitive matches, four of which were won. In the 2nd qualifying round, the team eliminated Sheriff from Tiraspol – a well-known and prestigious opponent. What has been interesting so far is that the visitors have already played with three different systems this season.

This shows that the team from Israel has not yet fully found its feet. On the other hand, the flexibility shown can also be a factor in going through the season in this constellation. Maccabi Haifa have now won seven of their last eight games. Things seem to be going quite well, the routines seem to have been consolidated.

One factor at the moment is the very large squad, which not only offers a competitive situation, but also becomes more of a problem because there could be too many unhappy players. This is something the club will have to address in the coming weeks.

Maccabi Haifa with good balance

But back to the sporting level: in 2022/23, Maccabi were one of the best teams in Israel, conceding only 24 goals in 26 league games and themselves averaging almost two goals per game. The fact that they also won seven out of ten games in the championship round speaks for the guests from Haifa.

The good balance from last season was already indicated in the first matches of the new season, but the finding phase is not yet completely over. It will be important to find a healthy mixture of offensive accents and defensive clarity. It is not yet clear whether this will succeed. The Slovan Bratislava vs. Maccabi Haifa betting odds also show that the bookmakers are still undecided whether it will be a high-scoring game or not. However, we expect an intense and entertaining encounter, which is why our value tip before the match between Slovan Bratislava and Maccabi Haifa is that more than 2.5 goals will be scored.

Maccabi Haifa’s likely line-up:
Nitzan – Sundgren, Gershon, Goldber, Cornud – Mohamed, Naor, Jaber, Saba, Haziza – Shuranov

Slovan Bratislava – Maccabi Haifa Direct comparison / H2H-balance

Never before have these clubs faced each other in a direct duel.

Slovan Bratislava – Maccabi Haifa Tip

Slovan Bratislava will try to play a good home match. The team from Slovakia is the underdog, but this does not seem to be set in stone, as the two teams are too close in terms of individual class for that to happen.

If you look at the form of both teams, the difference is not that big. Due to the attacking qualities of the two clubs, our prediction before the Slovan Bratislava vs. Maccabi Haifa match is that both teams will score.