Champions League: Minnows looking to keep the dream alive in the first qualifying round second leg
by Joseph King | by Joseph King
All to play for in this first qualifying round
While some of the smaller-nation teams in this competition might not realistically have a shot at making the league phase of the UEFA Champions League, each qualifying round that they advance in will dramatically increase their chances of making the league phase of either the Europa League or Conference League.
The losers of the UCL first qualifying round drop into the Conference League second qualifying round. Compare this to those who are eliminated in the UCL second qualifying round, who drop into the Europa League third qualifying round. Should a team then be eliminated in the UEL third round, they would drop right into the Conference League play-off.
Let’s take a look at some of the must-see second leg matches.
Linfield vs Shelbourne
One of the more fascinating first round matchups is between the Republic of Ireland’s Shelbourne and Northern Ireland’s Linfield, if not solely down to the geographic and cultural rivalry at play. Billed as an All-Ireland Derby, Shelbourne were slight favourites to qualify ahead of the first leg. They’re even bigger favourites now following victory in Dublin last week after Mipo Odubeko’s goal in the 58th minute gave Shels a 1-0 win.
However, Linfield will feel that this tie is far from over as they return to Belfast with only a single goal disadvantage to overturn. There’s sure to be a raucous atmosphere in Windsor Park on Wednesday, which is sure to have the Blues feeling bullish about their chances of upsetting the odds and securing qualification. Our experts tend to agree, as you can read about in our Linfield FC vs Shelbourne Dublin prediction. The winner will advance to face Qarabag in the second qualifying round as well as give their fans the bragging rights in this island rivalry.
- Date and Time: 16 July, 19:45 BST
- Location: Windsor Park, Belfast
- Aggregate score: Shelbourne leads 1-0
Lincoln Red Imps vs Vikingur
Gibraltar’s Lincoln Red Imps will look to seal the deal on Tuesday when they host Faroe Island’s Vikingur. What makes this matchup so interesting is the fact that it pits two of UEFA smallest nations against one another. Gibraltar, home to around 34,000 people, and Faroe Islands, home to 55,000, will each be pinning their Champions League hopes on their respective team’s performance here.
A wild first leg last week saw Lincoln Red Imps pull off the upset victory as they walked away from Klaksvik with a 3-2 aggregate lead. They now return to the Europa Sports Complex as heavy favourites to qualify, but will they be able to hold their nerve? Our experts believe that this will be another high-scoring encounter, which you can read about in our Lincoln Red Imps vs Vikingur Gota prediction! Victory for either of these sides will see them equal their best ever finish in the UEFA Champions League. The team that advances will meet Serbian powerhouse Red Star Belgrade in the second qualifying round.
- Date and Time: 15 July, 16:30 BST
- Location: Europa Sports Complex, Gibraltar
- Aggregate score: Lincoln Red Imps lead 3-2
Shkendija vs The New Saints
The New Saints will be looking to raise the profile of Welsh football when they take on North Macedonia’s Shkendija in Skopje for the second leg on Tuesday. After a 0-0 first leg in Oswestry, TNS now find themselves as underdogs to qualify as they will have to get it done on the road. On the line for the 17-time Cymru Premier champions is the opportunity to match their best ever finish in the Champions League.
Interestingly, this is not the first time that these two teams have faced off in this competition. The New Saints were sent home in this round by Shkendija in the 2018/19 season. That also happened to be the last time that Shkendija would make it out of the first qualifying round as they would eventually be knocked out in the third round by RB Salzburg. After a goalless first leg, our experts believe we’re in for another tight match in the second leg. See the full analysis in our Shkendija vs The New Saints prediction. The winner will take on either FCSB or Inter Club d’Escaldes in the next round.
- Date and Time: 15 July, 19:00 BST
- Location: Tose Proeski Arena, Skopje
- Aggregate score: 0-0
Full list of first leg results
- Kairat (1) vs Olimpija (1)
- Lincoln Red Imps (3) vs Vikingur (2)
- Hamrum (0) vs Zalgiris (2)
- Malmo (3) vs Saburtalo (1)
- Milsami (0) vs KuPS (1)
- RFS (1) vs Levadia (0)
- FC Differdange 03 (0) vs Drita (1)
- Shkendija (0) vs The New Saints (0)
- Inter d’Escaldes (1) vs FCSB (3)
- Breidablik (0) vs Egnatia (1)
- Buducnost Podgorica (0) vs Noah (1)
- Zrinjski (2) vs Virtus (0)
- Dinamo Minsk (0) vs Ludogorets (1)
- Linfield (0) vs Shelbourne (1)
