Will the Polish second division team be carried by the atmosphere?

What do 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Alemannia Aachen, FC Zurich and Birmingham City have in common? In recent decades, all of these renowned clubs have belonged to the extremely select circle of clubs that have been allowed to participate in international competition as a second division club. This season, this illustrious group has been expanded to include a traditional Polish club.

Cup winners Wisla Krakow are fighting for a place in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League. However, the road there is a rocky one. The first match will be against the runners-up from Kosovo. For the first leg between Wisla Krakow and Llapi, the odds on the Poles are lower, even though the visitors have gained far more experience on the European stage in the recent past

However, with regard to the Wisla Krakow vs. Llapi prediction, it must be taken into account that over 20,000 tickets have already been sold in advance. The euphoria in the city on the Vistula is boundless. After more than ten years, the 13-time Polish champions are celebrating their comeback in the European Cup. Although the focus this season will certainly be on returning to the national top flight, every international home game is naturally regarded as a real highlight by the active fan scene and within the team.

On paper, coach Kazimierz Moskal’s team definitely have a better chance of winning. In the three-way market, odds of 1.70 are currently being offered for Wisla Krakow to win against Llapi at Bet3000.

Wisla Krakow – Statistics & current form

With 13 national championships and five cup victories, Wisla Krakow is one of the most successful and renowned soccer clubs in Poland. The proud club from Poland’s second-largest city once reached the quarter-finals of the European Champions Cup (1978). Around 20 years ago, the red, white and blue team reached the last 16 of the UEFA Cup and even made it to the knockout round of the Europa League in 2011/12. Since relegation in 2022, however, the traditional club’s sporting home has only been the second division.

The first two attempts to secure a return to the elite league failed without success. In 2022/23, they only managed fourth place, and in the past season they only finished tenth. This was one of the reasons why Spanish coach Albert Rudé had to resign, even though the 37-year-old head coach sensationally led the ambitious second division club to a cup triumph. However, just one point from the last four league games was ultimately not enough to convince the management team to stay on. Wisla will therefore start the 2024/25 season with Kazimierz Moskal as Rudé’s successor and a new sporting director

Wisla fans create a goosebump atmosphere

What could have a positive effect on the new coach’s first competitive game on Thursday evening is the fact that league action in Poland’s second division starts on July 21. In comparison, the visitors from Kosovo will not play their first league game until mid/late August. Against this backdrop, the home side are likely to be at a different level in terms of fitness and competitive toughness. The odds on Wisla Krakow winning the first leg against Llapi are therefore quite interesting.

The fact that they can rely on home advantage in the first leg also speaks in favor of the second division team’s good chances. This is particularly pronounced at the Henryk Reyman Stadium. The stadium, which was only renovated 15 years ago, can hold over 30,000 spectators. The home ground, named after a former Polish footballer, is famous for its north stand, which is “misused” almost exclusively for standing as the originally intended seating stand. The very creative fan scene, which incidentally maintains a friendship with the Ultras of Lazio Rome, is based there and will be represented in large numbers. Over 20,000 spectators are easily expected, which is why we are predicting a win for the hosts between Wisla Krakow and Llapi – also due to the great support.

Predicted line-up for Wisla Krakow:
No information available

Llapi – stats & current form

While Wisla Krakow should definitely be familiar to many soccer fans, the opponent is probably a little different. Primarily the die-hard connoisseurs of the south-eastern European scene will have heard the club’s name before. But perhaps also attentive observers of the early qualifying rounds for the international competition. The Kosovars from the town of Podujeva have already made their mark on the European stage twice

Does Llapi already have a good starting position in Krakow?

Both in 2021/22 and 2022/23, however, KF Llapi fell at the opening hurdle in qualifying for the Conference League. FC Shkupi and Buducnost Podgorica were a size too big. In both cases, the first leg away from home was the negative factor. Both times, Llapi lost 2-0 in the first of the two games away from home and were therefore unable to turn things around in the second leg.

If you want to bet again that the Kosovars will lose their chance to reach the second qualifying round for the first time in Poland, you can take a look at the odds for a handicap win for the favorites before the Wisla Krakow vs. For the Asian handicap (-1.25) in favor of the team from Vistula, an attractive 2.50 is offered as the maximum odds.

However, coach Tahir Batatina’s charges should not be completely underestimated, because as runners-up who only lost seven out of 36 games and only had to concede to KF Ballkani in the end, they have a certain quality. However, it should be noted that by far the most dangerous attacking player left the club in the summer. Kosovo international Muhamet Hyseni, who scored 32 points in 34 appearances in the previous season (26 goals, six assists), is now playing for AC Horsens in Denmark’s top division and has left a huge gap in the two-time cup winners’ attack.

Predicted line-up from Llapi:
No information available

Wisla Krakow – Llapi head-to-head comparison / H2H record

For the first time the clubs face each other in a competitive or friendly match. In general, there is no need to take a detailed look at the head-to-head, as Wisla Krakow are playing a Kosovo opponent for the first time and FK Llapi have never faced a Polish opponent before

Wisla Krakow – Llapi betting tip

While the European Championship 2024 is still underway and the new European champion will be crowned next Sunday, international club soccer has also started again. This week, the first qualifying matches for the three European competitions are on the agenda. On Thursday, we can look forward to a relatively prominent club that is only active in Poland’s second division.

As the reigning cup winners, Wisla Krakow can still have legitimate hopes of reaching the group stage of the UEFA Europa League for the first time since 2011. The first hurdle on the way there comes from Kosovo, who are still waiting for their first win after four European Cup matches. The runners-up KF Llapi have lost both of their previous away games, meaning that the odds are relatively clearly in favour of the home team ahead of Thursday evening’s first leg between Wisla Kraka and Llapi in the city on the Vistula

We fully agree with this assessment and argue that the Poles have been preparing for longer and are at a completely different fitness level. We have also identified qualitative advantages for the hosts, so that in combination with the home advantage in front of over 20,000 spectators, the probability of a home win in the Wisla Krakow vs Llapi duel is very high. The maximum odds are 1.70 and we are playing with six units