The hosts are in the driving seat to progress to the playoffs, having secured a 2-1 victory in the first leg at Tehlne Pole last week thanks to goals from Frantzdy Pierrot and Dia Saba.
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Maccabi Haifa will host Slovan Bratislava in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League third round of qualification at Sammy Ofer Stadium on Tuesday. The hosts are in the driving seat to progress to the playoffs, having secured a 2-1 victory in the first leg at Tehlne Pole last week thanks to goals from Frantzdy Pierrot and Dia Saba either side of Abdoulaye Seck’s 12th-minute own goal. Meanwhile, the visitors are heading into the match on the back of a 2-1 Slovak Super Liga-win away to Skalica at the weekend, while the 2023-24 Israeli Premier League has not kicked off yet.
ועכשיו סמי 💚#יאללהמכבי pic.twitter.com/4yZgabETXx
— Maccabi Haifa FC (@mhfootballclub) August 9, 2023
Despite the fact the Israeli top division hasn’t started yet, Maccabi Haifa have been busy with the Champions League and the Israeli Super Cup, defeating Beitar Jerusalem 3-1 in the latter in the final week of July. The Greens won the league-title last term to earn a spot in the Champions League qualifiers, and defeated the likes of Hamrun and Sheriff Tiraspol to reach this far. The Greens of Carmel are potentially just three games away from securing a place in group phase of Europe’s premier club competition for the second successive season. Last term, the Israeli champions finished bottom of Group H, behind Benfica, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus, and their lone victory came against Juventus thanks to two unanswered goals from Omer Atzili in the first-half.
Slovan Bratislava, on the other hand, have made it to the third qualifying round of this tournament for the first time since 2014-15 and are aiming to play in the group phase of competition for the first time in the current format. The Sky-blues overcame the likes of Hesperange and Zrinjski in the previous rounds of qualification and interestingly have secured victories in both away-games of each tie. Meanwhile, Vladimir Weiss’ side are three games into the 2023-24 Slovak Super Liga and are currently sitting at the fifth position with five points to their name. Their lone league-win this term came against Skalica on Saturday thanks to first-half efforts from Nino Marcelli and Tigran Barseghyan. The result certainly strengthened the Slovakian side’s belief of going through on Tuesday.
Maccabi Haifa probable starting lineup: Nitzan, Sundgren, Seck, Goldberg, Cornud, Khalaili, Mohamed, Jaber, Refaelov, Saba, Pierrot
Slovan Bratislava probable starting lineup: Borjan, Pauschek, Kashia, Bajric, Lovat, Kucka, Savvidis, Kankava, Cavric, Abubakari, Zuberu
Maccabi Haifa
| Opponents | Score |
| Slovan Bratislava | 1-2 (W) |
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 4-1 (W) |
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 1-0 (L) |
| Beitar Jerusalem | 3-1 (W) |
| Hamrun | 2-1 (W) |
Slovan Bratislava
| Opponents | Score |
| Skalica | 1-2 (W) |
| Maccabi Haifa | 1-2 (L) |
| Banska Bystrica | 2-2 (D) |
| Zrinjski | 2-2 (D) |
| Kosice | 0-0 (D) |
| Last match-result | Score |
| Maccabi Haifa beat Slovan Bratislava | 1-2 |
The Champions League fixture between Maccabi Haifa and Slovan Bratislava will take place at Sammy Ofer Stadium on Tuesday at 10:30 pm IST.
| Maccabi Haifa vs Slovan Bratislava | Key details |
| Date | August 15 |
| Venue | Sammy Ofer Stadium |
| Kickoff time in Israel | 8:00 pm |
| Kickoff time in Slovakia | 7:00 pm |
| Kickoff time in India | 10:30 pm |
Football fans in Israel can catch the live action via Sport 1 and Sport 2. Meanwhile, those in Slovakia can watch the match on RTVS Sport.
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