Will the Bulgarian serial champions avert embarrassment?
In the run-up to this fixture, which was described as a very uneven matchup, quite a few experts expected the Bulgarian serial champions to comfortably advance to the Europa League group stage. The shock was therefore all the greater when the North Macedonian champions won 2-1 on home turf. The underdogs still have a difficult second leg ahead of them. However, if Ludogorets Razgrad fail to win at home against Shkendija, the North Macedonians will have pulled off a real sensation.
On the one hand, it should be noted that the North Macedonian champions already eliminated heavyweights FCSB in the Champions League qualifiers. On the other hand, the club, which will reach its first European main round even if it loses in Bulgaria (but then “only” the Conference League group stage), has also reached its limits in the third qualifying round of the Champions League. They lost 5-1 away to Qarabag Agdam, which will definitely encourage Ludogorets Razgrad. Given the enormous quality in the squad, we expect the Eagles to turn the game around in regular time, which is why we are applying a handicap of -1 to the Bulgarian serial champions.
Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the Bulgarians have recently experienced a minor crisis in terms of results. Ludogorets Razgrad have not won any of their last three competitive games (one draw, two defeats), suffered a crushing 3-0 defeat to Ferencvaros in the Champions League qualifiers, and also dropped points for the first time in the league before their defeat in North Macedonia against Lokomotiv Sofia after four wins at the start of the season (0-0). In three of their last five competitive games, the Eagles have failed to score.
Nevertheless, the task is likely to be a little too big for the North Macedonians, who were already 0-1 down in the first leg. In league action, they only managed a 0-0 draw against Arsimi at the weekend, which is why it would also be possible to bet on a clean sheet victory for the Bulgarians.
Ludogorets Razgrad – Shkendija Head-to-head record / H2H record
Head to head: 0 – 0 – 1
Last Thursday’s first leg was the first and only meeting between the two teams in a European competitive match to date. KF Shkendija’s 2-1 home win means they are somewhat surprisingly ahead in the head-to-head comparison.
Ludogorets Razgrad – Shkendija Tip
All in all, our prediction for Ludogorets Razgrad vs. Shkendija is that the Bulgarians will advance. After a strong start to the season, they have recently gone through a slight slump, but after their surprising defeat in North Macedonia, they have had a week to lick their wounds and prepare for the second leg. The visitors may have shocked FCSB in the Champions League qualifiers, but they then clearly reached their limits with a 5-1 away defeat at Qarabag Agdam. Their goal of qualifying for the main round of a European competition for the first time in the club’s history has already been achieved, as the loser of this playoff will compete in the Conference League group stage.
We assume that the Eagles will follow Qarabag Agdam’s example and set the course early on for a correspondingly high home win against the North Macedonians in order to decide the matter in regular time. As a logical consequence, we are therefore placing a handicap of -1 on the Bulgarians in our betting recommendation.
For an Adler victory by at least two goals, Ludogorets Razgrad vs. Shkendija betting odds of 1.90 are available, which we are betting on at Interwetten with four out of ten units.
