Our prediction for this Europa League match:
After suffering elimination in the Champions League qualifiers, Sheriff Tiraspol will look to kickstart their Europa League campaign in style when they host BATE Borisov to their Stadionul Sheriff on Thursday evening. The Moldovans are seen as favourites to win the first leg and they must be high on confidence following a hard-fought league win over Petrocub. Both Luvannor and Amine Talal are banned for the match as the duo was sent off in the 4-1 defeat to Maccabi Haifa.
The Belarusians, on the other hand, experienced all sorts of problems at the back in back-to-back losses to Aris Limassol (5-11 on agg), which is probably the main reason why we are going to bet on Sheriff. Talented defender Alexander Martynov is widely expected to replace Sidi Bane in the starting XI. In their last meeting in European competitions BATE emerged triumphant, meaning that the hosts are hungry for revenge.
Highlighted Team (Sheriff Tiraspol):
Sheriff Tiraspol or simply Sheriff are the most successful Moldavian club. The club was founded in 1997 four years later (2000/2001) they won their first Moldovan National Division trophy. Over the years Sheriff Tiraspol have established themselves as the dominant force in the Moldovan football and you should that they won their 15th domestic trophy in the 2016/2017 season.
Sheriff were level on points with Dacia Chisinau, but thanks to a better goal difference Roberto Bordin’s men won the national championship. The Moldovan champions wear yellow shirts and yellow shorts when playing at home, whilst the colour of their away kits is black. Sheriff Tiraspol host their opponents at Sheriff Stadium in Tiraspol and the venue can hold 12.746 people.
By beating the likes of Dinamo Tirana and Dinamo Zagreb the Moldovan club did well to make it to the Champions League play-off round in the 2010/2011 season, but Basel eventually proved to be a big catch for them.