Atletic Escaldes host Partizani at the Estadi Comunal d'Andorra la Vella on Tuesday in the first leg of their Europa Conference League second qualifying round.
Champions of the Primera Divisio in the 2022-23 season, Atletic lost out in the preliminary round of the Champions League qualifiers to Buducnost Podgorica last month.
The Montenegrin side won 3-0 in a neutral Iceland to end their ambitions of reaching the tournament finals. Balsa Sekulic opened the scoring for them from the penalty spot in the 14th minute before an own goal from Alex Sanchez doubled their advantage. At the hour mark, Sekulic netted his second of the evening and made it 3-0 for Podgorica, as Atletic were comprehensively beaten.
It was only their second excursion in Europe, having lost out in the first qualifying round of the Europa Conference League in 2022. Atletic begin from a round further than last year here and will be hoping for a better result this time around.
On the other hand, Partizani lost out in the first qualifying round of the Champions League to BATE Borisov earlier this month. The sides played out a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Albania before going down 2-0 in Belarus.
Atletic Escaldes were humbled in their last European game and need to up the ante here to prevent another heavy loss. Partizani fared better in comparison, and have some good options in defense that should give them an edge.
The Albanian side have more experience in these kinds of games than Atletic, but we predict a draw in the Andorran leg.
Prediction: Atletic Escaldes 1-1 Partizani
Tip 1 - Result: Draw
Tip 2 - Goals over/under 2.5: Under 2.5
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: Yes
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