Predictions & Livescore Europa League | Qualifying - Sheriff Tiraspol vs Zira FK

Europa League - Sheriff Tiraspol vs Zira FK
Match Time: 12-07-2024 01:00 Friday (GMT+8)
Football Livescore | Match Prediction & Tips
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Having seen their dominant run in the Moldovan top flight come to an end last season, Sheriff Tiraspol cannot claim to have enjoyed a positive campaign.

Nevertheless, despite a second-placed finish, they did enjoy another European adventure courtesy of qualifying for the group stages of the Europa League.

That said, just one point came from six games against Roma, Slavia Prague and Servette, albeit with three of their five defeats being by one-goal margins.

Yuriy Hura has now been appointed as manager tasked with the responsibility of regaining the league title and going as far as possible on the continent, whether that be in this competition or the Europa Conference League.

Both teams have the backup of dropping into the latter tournament if they lose this two-legged tie, yet Hura knows that he will face a struggle to win over supporters if they succumb in a match-up of this magnitude.

Meanwhile, Zira have only been in existence for nine years and they are already slowly becoming regular qualifiers for European competition.

While it should be noted that they finished 25 points adrift of Azerbaijani champions Qarabag FK in 2023-24, coming out on top in a congested race for second was a big achievement.

Zira boasted an incredible defensive record last season, conceding just 22 goals in their 36 matches, and Rashad Sadygov will hope for more of the same on Thursday.

This is just their third experience of continental football. The only time that Zira have progressed through a two-legged tie came in 2017-18 when they beat Differdange 03 from Luxembourg 4-1 on aggregate.

Prediction: Sheriff Tiraspol 3-1 Zira FK