In today’s football predictions, we are looking at the Scottish Challenge Cup and 4 games in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers.
The season is getting interesting and you can already check out our PSG vs Aston Villa prediction for the Super Cup match tomorrow.
Back to today’s focus, we have three games with a straight win prediction and two that we expect the final outcome to be over 1.5 goals.
And of course, I have not chosen these predictions from assumptions or because I support any of the teams that are playing.
I took data from all the teams including their recent form, their previous leg matches and what anyone can deduce from them especially with the UEFA qualifying matches, and much more.
While it is not a guarantee, it is solid insight that can help you identify the best options to select when placing bets on these matches.
Here’s a table summarizing all the games below:
| Competition | Match | Prediction |
| Challenge Cup | Queen of the South vs Cumbernauld Colts | Queen of the South to win |
| Champions League | Kauno Zalgiris vs Dinamo Zagreb | Dinamo Zagreb to win |
| Champions League | Crvena Zvezda vs Hapoel Be’er Sheva | Crvena Zvezda to win |
| Champions League | Celje vs Ararat-Armenia | Over 1.5 goals |
| Champions League | Sturm Graz vs Fenerbahce | Over 1.5 goals |
Queen of the South vs Cumbernauld Colts Prediction
Prediction: Queen of the South to win
Queen of the South are the higher-level team here and they are also playing at home. Those are the two main things supporting them to win this game.
Their recent form is not very good because they have lost four matches in a row and also lost their last two games at home.
But they have scored in at least six matches in a row. They also win around 71% of their home games when they score the first goal.
Cumbernauld Colts on the other hand have lost their last three away games. So even though Queen of the South are not in good form, this is a game they should be winning because of their level and the home advantage.
This is still a medium-low confidence prediction because of the recent form of Queen of the South.
Kauno Zalgiris vs Dinamo Zagreb Prediction
Prediction: Dinamo Zagreb to win
There is not too much that needs to be said about why Dinamo Zagreb are the team to win this game.
They won the first leg 5-0 and Kauno Zalgiris did not score in the match.
Dinamo Zagreb have also scored an average of around 2.5 goals in their recent matches. They are more experienced in Europe and they have the better squad between the two teams.
They may rest some players because they already have a five-goal advantage, but even with that, they should still have enough quality to win again.
The result from the first leg already shows the difference between both teams, and this makes Dinamo Zagreb to win one of the strongest predictions for today.
Crvena Zvezda vs Hapoel Be’er Sheva Prediction
Prediction: Crvena Zvezda to win
Hapoel Be’er Sheva won the first leg 1-0, so Crvena Zvezda have to come out and attack in this second leg.
Before the first-leg defeat, Crvena Zvezda defeated Larne 5-0 at home and 4-0 away. That is nine goals in two Champions League qualifying games.
They have also defeated Lille 1-0 at home in a European match, which is another result that shows that they can get the job done at their own stadium.
Hapoel Be’er Sheva recently lost 2-1 away against Vikingur Reykjavik. So they are not exactly a team that cannot be beaten when they play away from home.
The home support at the Rajko Mitic Stadium should also help Crvena Zvezda here.
The prediction is for Crvena Zvezda to win the game. It does not mean they will automatically qualify because Hapoel already have a one-goal advantage from the first leg.
Celje vs Ararat-Armenia Prediction
Prediction: Over 1.5 goals
The first leg ended 2-1 to Ararat-Armenia, which means we already saw three goals when these teams played last week.
Celje have scored six goals in three Champions League qualifying matches. That is an average of two goals in each game.
But they have also conceded seven goals in those three matches, which is an average of about 2.33 goals conceded in each game.
In total, their three qualifying games have produced 13 goals, or about 4.33 combined goals in each match.
Ararat-Armenia have scored nine goals and conceded six in five qualifiers. Their qualifying games have produced an average of three combined goals.
Celje are behind in the tie, so they need to attack. This should also give Ararat-Armenia opportunities to create chances of their own.
Based on the first leg and the scoring data from both teams, over 1.5 goals looks like a good prediction for this match.
Sturm Graz vs Fenerbahce Prediction
Prediction: Over 1.5 goals
Fenerbahce won the first leg 2-0 and this means Sturm Graz need to score at least twice if they want to level the tie.
Five of the last six matches played by Sturm Graz have produced at least two goals. They also scored 12 goals across those six games, which gives them an average of two goals in each match.
Fenerbahce have scored in all of their last six games. They scored 15 goals and conceded only two goals during those matches.
The last three competitive meetings between the two teams ended 2-0, 1-1 and 2-1. So all three matches produced at least two goals.
Sturm Graz have no choice but to attack and this can leave spaces for Fenerbahce to use on the counterattack.
Over 1.5 goals looks like the best option here because both teams have reasons to go for a goal.
Today’s Football Predictions Ranked
| Rank | Prediction | Confidence |
| 1 | Celje vs Ararat-Armenia – Over 1.5 goals | High |
| 2 | Kauno Zalgiris vs Dinamo Zagreb – Dinamo Zagreb to win | High |
| 3 | Sturm Graz vs Fenerbahce – Over 1.5 goals | High |
| 4 | Crvena Zvezda vs Hapoel Be’er Sheva – Crvena Zvezda to win | Medium |
| 5 | Queen of the South vs Cumbernauld Colts – Queen of the South to win | Medium-low |