A fight for the pole position for the 2nd leg

In the 2nd round of the Champions League qualification, there will be a duel between the Ukrainian runners-up Dnipro-1 and the Greek champions Panathinaikos Athens. The hosts are qualifying for the Champions League for the first time this year, but they certainly have international experience. In the Conference League they reached the intermediate round last year. Panathinaikos were crowned Greek champions for the first time in over 10 years last season. The guests have a slightly higher quality in the squad, which is why they are also the slight favourites.

Are you new to our Betandyou blog? Well, check out our promotions!

Dnipro-1 form

Since the club was founded in 2018, the performance curve has been pointing upwards again. After just one year in the 2nd division, they managed to get promoted back to the top Ukrainian division in 2019. After establishing themselves there, they achieved an outstanding 3rd place in the 2021/22 season and thus qualified for Europe. In the Conference League last year they made it to the intermediate round where they failed at AK Larnaka. In the league they achieved their best placement with 2nd place and at the same time the runner-up title. As a result, they can even take part in the Champions League qualification this year. With Panathinaikos Athens, however, a strong opponent awaits in the second round. They will probably have to win the home game if they want to have a chance of entering the 3rd round.

In the final table of last season, Dnipro had a strong record of 21 wins, 4 draws and 5 defeats. The goal ratio of 61:27 goals was also the 2nd best in the league. They also made a strong impression in the home table. Although it was only enough for 3rd place there, they still managed to win 11 of 15 home games! They only lost in 2 home games. With 34 goals, they had the 2nd best offensive of all teams. On average, they were responsible for more than 2.00 goals per game.

However, at the end of last season, 2 of the last 3 games were lost. Their last home game against Kryvbas was narrowly won 1-0. 5 of the last 6 home games have been won.

Panathinaikos form

Before snagging the championship title last season, the team had to wait over 12 years for such a sense of achievement. It was a long dry spell that the club now has behind it. For the first time since the 2010/11 season, they are back in the Champions League qualification this year. Last season they failed in the 3rd round of the Conference League qualifiers against Slavia Prague . They celebrated their last major international success in the 2016/17 season when they reached the group stage of the UEFA Europa League. This year the goal is of course to survive the 2nd round and thus win against Dnipro.
Panathinaikos secured the championship title last season with 61 points. In the end, the lead over AEK Athens was just 2 points.

The defense certainly had a large part in the championship title, because with only 12 goals conceded in 26 games, they were by far the best defensive in the league.19 of 26 league games were won and only 3 times they had to admit defeat. In addition, there were strong guest appearances, because they were also in 1st place away from home after 13 games. Only 2 times they had to admit defeat in 13 home games, 9 times they left the pitch as winners. At the end of the season they went 6 games unbeaten in a row. During that period, they also conceded just one goal and that was away to Aris Saloniki. In contrast to the opponent, Panathinaikos played his last competitive game in March.

Dnipro-1 - Panathinaikos: What to expect? 

At the beginning of each season it is difficult to judge, especially when two similarly strong teams meet. However, Panathinaikos is slightly favoured as the Greek champions and will primarily try not to concede a goal. After all, they had one of the best defenses in Europe last season. Our assessment therefore: There are less than 2.5 goals in the game. A winner is hard to come by, but Panathinaikos certainly won't risk everything to win. So it's quite possible that this game will also end in a draw.

• Under 2.5
• Draw (risk)

* All odds and markets are correct at the time of publication and subject to change.