Sports Mole previews Wednesday’s Europa League clash between PAOK and Maccabi Tel Aviv, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
PAOK and Maccabi Tel Aviv will clash on matchday one of the UEFA Europa League at Toumba Stadium on Wednesday.
Both teams started their campaign in the third qualifying round, and they will both be keen to progress beyond the league phase this term.
Match preview
PAOK reached the league phase of this competition after two gruelling rounds against Austrian side Wolfsberger AC in the third qualifying round and Croatian outfit Rijeka in the play-off phase.
The hosts needed an extra-time goal in the second leg against Wolfsberger to progress to the play-off stage, where they annihilated Rijeka 5-1 on aggregate.
The Greek side had lost 1-0 in the first leg, but they made sure of a place in the league stage with a comprehensive 5-0 win in front of their fans.
Giannis Konstantelias was the standout player in that impressive victory, as his two assists and a goal helped Razvan Lucescu’s team to get over the line.
Besides making it to the league phase without a blemish, the Dikefalos have enjoyed a good start to the domestic season, with three wins and a draw in their opening four fixtures.
Last term, the Greek side made it to the round of 16, but they will be eager to go even further in the current campaign.
Meanwhile, Maccabi Tel Aviv started their European adventure in the UEFA Champions League, but they could not quite make it in Europe’s elite club competition, causing them to drop into the less-fancied Europa League.
The Israelis battered Hamrun Spartans 5-2 on aggregate to set up a clash with Dynamo Kyiv, against whom they triumphed 3-2 across the two legs of the play-off stage.
Coming into this encounter, Zarko Lazetic’s team have won three of their last four matches in this competition, with the loss recorded in their last outing away to Dynamo Kyiv.
That said, the visitors have struggled on the road in this competition recently, having lost four of their last six fixtures in Europe’s second tier away from home.
However, they will be hoping to carry their current league form, which saw them win four consecutive matches, into Wednesday’s fixture.
PAOK form (all competitions):
Maccabi Tel Aviv form (all competitions):
Team News
Several players will miss out on Wednesday’s match for the home side, meaning Lucescu will be forced to make some adjustments to his team.
Attacking midfielder Dimitrios Pelkas is currently sidelined with a bruise, and he will not be involved in any capacity on Wednesday.
Dimitrios Berdos is ineligible to feature for the Greek side in the competition until June 2026, and so is Mahamadou Balde.
Unlike the hosts, the visiting side have a clean bill of health, thus a familiar starting XI could file out for them at Touba Stadium on Wednesday.
Since joining from Young Boys in July, Mohamed Camara has been a mainstay in the heart of the defence, and he is expected to partner with one of Raz Shlomo or Heitor at the back.
In the attack, the trio of Ion Nicolaescu, Osher Davida and Elad Madmon have featured prominently this term, and they should all keep their places.
PAOK possible starting lineup:
Pavlenka; Baba, Lovren, Kedziora, Sastre; Ozdoev, Meite; Taison, Konstantelias, Zivkovic; Giakoumakis
Maccabi Tel Aviv possible starting lineup:
Mishpati; Asante, Camara, Sholomo, Revivo; Sissokho, Belic, Peretz; Davida, Nicolaescu, Madmon
We say: PAOK 2-2 Maccabi Tel Aviv
Both teams come into this clash in fine form, winning matches and scoring goals aplenty. PAOK have netted 10 goals across six competitive fixtures, while Maccabi Tel Aviv have failed to score only once in their last nine fixtures, with 24 goals plundered in that time.
We expect a game that will produce a high number of goals, but will likely end in a 2-2 draw.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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