Last year they decapitated Tuchel, now they start from the bottom of the Champions League
Reading Time: 2min | Tue. 25.07.23. | 13:39
Croatian powerhouse Dinamo Zagreb are the veterans of the UCL qualifications and have to prove it today against Astana
Six out of their 12 attempts in the Champions League qualifications ended in an ecstatic celebration for successfully reaching the group stage of the European elite competition.
However, once in, Dinamo Zagreb have struggled to make any significant result, hitting bottom in every edition of the UCL. On the other hand, it didn't prevent them from setting up a massive upset last year, as they defeated Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea 1-0 in the opening group game.
This shocking loss was too much for Chelsea's board, thus decided to sack Tuchel and appoint Graham Potter as a new head coach, though he neither survived the calamitous season at Stamford Bridge.
In a group with the Blues, Milan and Salzburg, the Croatian side won only one more point and said farewell to Europe before New Year's Eve.
Now, they're on the same road, back again, starting their European campaign in the second round of the UCL qualifications against Kazakhstan champion Astana.
It's one of seven Champions League fixtures scheduled for Tuesday, with five more games on Wednesday's menu. The winners of those two-leg ties will reach the third round, with the ultimate hurdle before reaching the Champions League itself being the playoffs, also to be decided after home and away games.
Along with Dinamo, tonight's programme will present us with some more familiar names of European football, like Galatasaray, Kobehavn and Panathinaikos.
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - QUALIFICATIONS
Second round
Tuesday
19.00: (6.25) Zalgiris (4.10) Galatasaray (1.55)
19.00: (4.40) Helsinki (3.50) Molde (1.85)
21.00: (1.40) Dinamo Zagreb (4.50) Astana (8.50)
21.00: (3.35) Dnipro-1 (3.25) Panathinaikos (2.25)
21.30: (3.00) Servette (3.50) Genk (2.30)
22.00: (2.75) Zrinjski (3.00) Slovan B. (2.85)
22.15: (5.30) Breidablik (3.60) Copenhagen (1.70)
Wednesday
20.00: (3.05) Sheriff Tiraspol (3.10) Maccabi Haifa (2.50)
20.00: (1.63) Aris Limmasol (3.60) Bate Borisov (6.25)
21.15: (2.10) Rakow (3.30) Qarabag (3.70)
21.45: (5.00) Ki Klaksvik (3.50) Hacken (1.75)
21.45: (1.60) Ludogorets (3.90) Olimpija (6.00)
***odds are subject to change***
