Botev Plovdiv v Panathinaikos

Botev Plovdiv vs Panathinaikos Preview

Botev Plovdiv were dealt a 2-1 defeat away from home in Greece against Panathinaikos in last week's 1st leg clash of this 2nd qualifying round in the Europa League, but the Bulgarian hosts now return to their Stadion Hristo Botev where they will be looking to turn this tie on its head on Thursday night.

The Bulgarian hosts have managed to collect just five wins in their last 14 matches in all competitions, three of which were registered on home soil where Botev Plovdiv gained victories against Beroe and Krumovgrad in pre-season friendlies along with a 1st leg home win against Slovenian outfit Maribor in the previous qualifying round of the Europa League.

However, Botev Plovdiv have also been handed six defeats within this 14-game period and having lost in last week's home tie against their Greek counterparts, Panathinaikos, the Bulgarian outfit look set to struggle on the European stage once again on Thursday night.

That said, Botev Plovdiv still remain unbeaten at home in this competition having played a total of nine home ties overall, picking up seven wins in the process.

Panathinaikos have yet to start their Greek top flight campaign but nevertheless, the visitors will be in confident mood as they prepare for this upcoming trip to face Botev Plovdiv at the Stadion Hristo Botev on the back of three wins on the trot.

Back-to-back pre-season friendly wins against AEK Larnaca and Maccabi Netanya have been further boosted by last week's 1st leg 2-1 home win against their upcoming opponents on Thursday night, Botev Plovdiv.

The bigger picture shows Panathinaikos have lost just four of their previous 14 games in all competitions which came in the form of losses at the hands of AEK Athens, Aris, PAOK and Eintracht Braunschweig, the latter being in a pre-season friendly but Diego Alonso's side have also collected eight wins within this period as well, but results away from home in the Europa League leave a lot to be desired.

Indeed, Panathinaikos have registered just three wins in their last 20 away ties in this competition so it may be best to concentrate on the goals market for this upcoming clash as both sides will fancy their chances of gaining a win here on the night.

Botev Plovdiv v Panathinaikos Verdict

With home advantage under their belts, Botev Plovdiv will go all out for the win here in this return leg as they look to overhaul the 2-1 deficit, while Panathinaikos know they cannot afford to just sit back and invite the hosts onto them in order to protect this slender one-goal advantage.

This should make for an entertaining game with a few goals.

Therefore, our main bet will be Over 2.5 goals @ 2.00

Other side bets worth considering:

Panathinaikos win & Over 2.5 goals @ 2.75

Correct Score: Panathinaikos 2-1 @ 9.00