Galatasaray v Molde

Galatasaray vs Molde Preview

We've reached the 'pointy end' of the qualifying stage of this season's Champions League as teams battle it out for a place in the financially lucrative group stage and Tuesday night features this upcoming clash between Turkish hosts, Galatasaray, and their Norwegian counterparts, Molde, in this 2nd leg of their play-off tie.

Galatasaray grabbed a 3-2 win in the 1st leg away from home at the Aker Stadion to give the Turkish side a narrow lead heading into this decisive return leg at the Rams Global Stadium where the home side will be searching for a fourth win on the trot in all competitions.

Previously, Galatasaray had progressed through the earlier qualifying rounds of this competition by virtue of securing a 3-2 win on aggregate against Lithuanian side, Zalgiris, followed by a comfortable 4-0 victory over two legs against Slovenian outfit, Olimpija, so Galatasaray will be confident that they can finish the job on home soil on Tuesday night.

Five wins from their last six matches in all competitions suggest Galatasaray may be too strong for Molde here especially at home where the hosts have won their last four games on the trot.

Molde's recent indifferent results overall continued last week with that 3-2 loss at home to Galatasaray as Molde failed to make home advantage count in last week's 1st leg and this defeat means Molde have managed to capture just one win out of their last five matches overall in all competitions.

Molde's singular success in recent games came in the form of a 2-0 win in extra-time against Faroe Islands club, Klaksvikar, which helped them through to the play-off stage of this season's Champions League.

The Norwegian visitors had also previously accounted for the likes of Finnish outfit, HJK, by way of a 2-1 win on aggregate but Molde now face a tough assignment on Tuesday night when they make their way to Istanbul for this crucial 2nd leg tie.

Molde have registered just two wins out of their last seven outings on the road with both wins being achieved in the domestic Eliteserien with wins at Valerenga and Stabaek but three defeats within this period, two of which were in the Champions League, suggests that the Norwegian visitors have their work cut out in this return leg at the Rams Global Stadium.

Galatasaray v Molde Verdict

Galatasaray certainly have winning momentum behind them heading into this crucial 2nd leg tie and with home advantage along with converting five wins out of their last six matches overall, the Turkish hosts look the more likely to not only take the spoils in this return leg at Istanbul, but to also progress through to the group stage of this competition.

Therefore, our main bet will be Galatasaray win @ 1.65

Other side bets worth considering:

Galatasaray win & Over 2.5 goals @ 2.30

Correct score: Galatasaray 2-1 @ 9.00