Europa League, Thursday, 15.08.2024 at 20:30
FC Lugano and Partizan Belgrade will face off in the thrilling second leg of the 3rd round of Europa League qualifying on Thursday, and the encounter promises to be a real highlight.
As the Ticino side’s home stadium is not available to host the rematch, FC Thun’s larger Stockhorn Arena will be the stage for this European Cup showpiece.
For all sports betting fans with a penchant for excellent odds boosts, this is an excellent opportunity to try out my promising Lugano Partizan Belgrade betting tip, which assumes goals on both sides and deliberately avoids a home win bet
In a match dominated by the color combination of black and white, which FC Lugano won 1-0 in the first leg, the outcome remains unclear.
Both teams put in strong performances in the first game, and although the Swiss now naturally have the advantage, it will only be the second leg that decides who will actually reach the play-off stage.
Meanwhile, if you trust my Lugano Partizan Belgrade betting tip, you can almost double your stake if you are successful.
After I’ve illustrated the Swiss’ European Cup home record, you’ll understand better why I’d rather avoid betting on a home win at the betting office
The bookmakers’ forecast
The current odds for an FC Lugano win are around 1.60, which also underlines their position as favorites.
The odds for an away win by Partizan Belgrade, on the other hand, are around 4.80, which means that the visitors only have a very small chance of making the playoffs.
However, this value has been set a little too high against Luzern, who are weak at home internationally – and you’ll soon understand why
Analysis: Lugano vs Partizan Belgrade
In just a few years, Lugano have developed into a club that could replace FC Basel as a long-term challenger to the strong YB in the annual battle for the Super League title.
Last year, the Ticino side not only took part in international business, but also celebrated a remarkable 3:2 victory over Besiktas Istanbul in the Europa League group stage.
This season, on the other hand, FCL attempted to qualify for the top flight for the first time in 23 years, but failed to do so against Fenerbahce Istanbul after two spirited performances that ended 3:4 and 1:2.
Nevertheless, for a club like Lugano, which normally plays in front of around 5,000 spectators, it is a remarkable achievement to have stood up to a club that is currently signing numerous stars with José Mourinho as coach
At first glance,
Partizan Belgrade is a veteran of Eastern European soccer that could pass for a perennial contender on the international stage. However, the “steamroller” has lost momentum in recent seasons.
The Serbs also tried their hand at UCL qualifying at the start of the 2024/25 season, which has just begun, but were thoroughly outplayed by Dynamo Kiev, losing 2:6 and 0:3.
As a result, the 1-0 defeat in the first leg against Lugano a week ago came as no surprise to many sports betting fans who are familiar with the matter
Odds analysis
Signing up online with Oddset is a good opportunity to get an overview of the full range of Lugano Partizan Belgrade bets available from the best bookmakers in their field.
In this regard, if in doubt, I would only recommend my recommended “both teams to meet” bet at good odds of currently around 1.70.
However, if you’re feeling a bit braver and don’t fancy a 08/15 favorite bet, then I’d go for a “draw bet” as an additional condition, which promises above-average odds of around 4.00.
Lugano have been without a European Cup home win for a long time!
Of course, FC Lugano intend to qualify for the group stage of the Europa League, that’s quite clear. And yet I think the aforementioned win odds within the current Lugano Partizan Belgrade odds are a tad too optimistic.
Did you know that FCL have not won any of their last nine European Cup home games and have not even scored the consolation goal in seven of these nine home appearances?
And we’re not talking about competitive international matches from the distant past, but games that have all been played since the 2019/20 season against various, sometimes mediocre clubs such as Malmö FF, Copenhagen, Hapoel Be’er Sheva or Bodo/Glimt.
Lugano could wobble
In the first leg a week ago, Lugano had a little more of the game, if only because they were able to keep the ball in their own ranks for almost two thirds of the match.
But that did not mean the Serbs were without a chance. It is telling that the Ticino side’s right-back and goalkeeper were the team’s best players.
In fact, goalkeeper Saipi saved several great Serbian chances in the course of the match
Lugano are also always ready to concede a goal. Their play is often the better, which can be clearly demonstrated statistically by successful passing sequences and other data sets.
But just last weekend, FCL lost 3-2 at home to Luzern in the Super League, conceding three goals in the process, although their opponents only managed seven shots on target
Partizan, for their part, are on a downward spiral, so there’s nothing to sugarcoat.
Last weekend’s 0-0 draw in the league against IMT Novi Beograd could mean that they could miss out on their traditional second place in the Serbian league behind Red Star again this season.
Personally, however, I’m much more confident of Partizan scoring an honorary goal in the Stockhorn than the aforementioned home win bet on FC Lugano.
Especially as the “Both teams score” bet promises a slightly higher payout of around 170% of the stake compared to this scenario if successful
My tip:
Lugano are slightly overrated in the betting markets for the second leg, as the team is obviously still prone to an above-average number of mistakes at this early stage of the season.
Partizan, on the other hand, are not as strong as they have been in recent years, but are still too good to go scoreless against the Ticino side again.
Given the current form of both teams, I think a 1:1 or even a higher draw after 90 minutes is quite possible. However, such a score would do the Serbs very little good
My tip: Both teams score
