Low-scoring showdown in Hungary?

In a hectic game last Thursday at the Vivacom Arena in Sofia, there were two red cards but no goals and no winner. This means that the decision on who will advance to the first round of the Europa League qualifiers will now be made on neutral ground in Hungary, where the Israelis have to play their home game due to the global political situation. According to the bookmakers, Hapoel Beer Sheva are the favorites to progress against Levski Sofia.

However, it should be noted that the Reds have yet to beat Levski Sofia in three attempts (two draws, one defeat). Two years ago, the Israelis lost to the Bulgarians in the Conference League qualifiers, which should not be completely ruled out in the prediction for Hapoel Beer Sheva against Levski Sofia. In terms of the overall market value of the squad, there is not much to choose between the two clubs, which is why we expect a closely fought contest with an unclear outcome.

The tendency to draw is also remarkably high, especially as both teams’ core strength lies in their defensive work. Five of the Israelis’ last eight international competitive games ended without a winner (one win, two draws). For the Bulgarians, it was three of their last five European competitive games (one win, one defeat). No less significant: in two of the three previous direct encounters between the two teams, no goals were scored.

Hapoel Beer Sheva – Statistics & current form

Hapoel Beer Sheva finished last season’s Israeli league in first place but failed to defend their lead in the championship round. In the end, the Reds finished runners-up for the third time in the last four seasons. They will therefore have to wait a little longer for their sixth championship title. At least the team from the Carmel Mountains secured the national cup for the fourth time in the club’s history with a 2-0 win over Beitar Jerusalem.

Coach Ran Kozuch’s team even managed to cap off their State Cup victory on Sunday. In a direct duel with national champions Maccabi Tel Aviv, the Reds secured a 2-1 victory, which secured them the Israeli Super Cup. Combined with a goalless draw against Levski Sofia, the Israelis are now unbeaten in seven competitive games (three wins, three draws).

Hapoel Beer Sheva with a poor record in Europe recently

Not least because of their strong form, the bookmakers’ odds are now favoring Hapoel Beer Sheva against Levski Sofia. Bwin is offering odds of 2.05 for an Israeli victory in regular time.

However, it should be noted that the Israelis’ recent record in Europe does not bode well. Beer Sheva has won only one of its last eight international competitive games (five draws, two defeats) and failed to score in five of those eight games. The fact that creative player Eliel Peretz is now also serving a yellow-red card suspension from the first leg could further slow down the flow of the game, which in turn adds weight to our prediction that the second leg is unlikely to be a high-scoring affair.

Predicted line-up for Hapoel Beer Sheva:
Eliasi – Lopes, Baltaxa, Vitor, Mizrahi – Ventura – Biton, Kangwa, Kanaan, Ganah – Zlatanovic

Levski Sofia – Statistics & current form

PFK Levski Sofia has been in existence since 1914 and is one of the country’s flagship clubs. The traditional club has already won 26 national championships and 26 cup titles, as well as numerous other titles, and has reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League twice. However, things have become increasingly quiet for the Blues over the last two decades, who, like all clubs in Bulgaria, are suffering from the fact that Ludogorez Rasgrad is simply unbeatable.

This summer, the capital club once again had to settle for second place, which means they will now enter the Europa League qualifiers. This makes it anything but easy to reach the European main round, even though the club is not lacking in experience. The Blues have already played 252 international competitive matches, winning 89 (58 draws, 105 defeats).

Levski Sofia with two bitter losses

If Hapoel Beer Sheva beats Levski Sofia, the Bulgarians will secure their 90th European competitive win, which would see them through to the second qualifying round. The fact that the Blues defeated the Israelis in the Conference League qualifiers two years ago is a positive sign. On the other hand, the Bulgarian capital club has only won one of its last five international competitive games (three draws, one defeat).

There are also two other problems. Firstly, the capital club still lacks competitive toughness. While Beer Sheva won the Israeli Super Cup at the weekend, Levski Sofia had no game as the league does not start until next Sunday. Secondly, the defensive personnel situation is extremely tense. Captain Tsunami has suffered a lateral ligament strain in his knee and is still doubtful, while Maicon was shown a yellow-red card in the first leg and will be suspended. This means that coach Julio Velázquez’s defensive line-up is practically set.

Levski Sofia’s expected line-up:
Vutsov – Lima, Makoun, Dimitrov, Aldair – Ohene, Kostadinov – Krilov, Rildo, Petkov – Bala

Hapoel Beer Sheva – Levski Sofia Head-to-head record

Head to head: 0 – 2 – 1

A total of three international competitive matches have already taken place between the two clubs, and the Israelis are still waiting for their first ever win against the Bulgarians. In 2023/24, they were defeated 1-2 in Sofia after a goalless draw at home. Last Thursday’s first leg ended in a 0-0 draw.

Hapoel Beer Sheva – Levski Sofia Tip

An interesting prediction for Hapoel Beer Sheva against Levski Sofia is that a match that is unlikely to produce many goals will not be decided in regular time, but will go into extra time with another draw. However, as both teams are very evenly matched and can be considered roughly equal in strength, while the neutral venue in Hungary does not give either team an advantage, the three-way system is not recommended overall. Especially in a heated second half, a small difference could quickly make all the difference.

In any case, we do not expect a high-scoring match, as both teams will be looking to keep a clean sheet after making changes to their lineups due to suspensions from the first leg. Accordingly, we predict that there will be a maximum of two goals in the second leg.

For under 2.5 goals, Interwetten is offering odds of 1.60 for Hapoel Beer Sheva against Levski Sofia, which we are betting on with four out of ten units. Finally, we would like to point out the current Interwetten freebet, which could be used to place a riskier bet such as the suggested result bet (0-0 at half-time) without any risk.