THE DIE IS CAST

As Brazil is hosting the World Cup, the die is cast in the European Cup. It seems that its results are no less important to Azerbaijani fans than World Cup matches. Indeed, Azerbaijani clubs will participate in the European Cup.

As always, fans and journalists hope that Azerbaijani clubs will reach at least the playoff stage. Although many were pleased with the results of the draw, clubs are cautious in their comments. Perhaps, they still have not forgotten the bitter lesson of the last season when Neftci shocked everyone by losing to Albanian Skenderbeu, which they surpassed both by their players and budget.

Karabakh

This season, the champion of Azerbaijan, Karabakh, will join the fight in the Champions League from the second qualifying stage. Their opponent will be Valletta FC from Malta. The Agdam club is definitely the favourite in this duel. Although the club's head coach Qurban Qurbanov is cautious in his comments, we all know that Karabakh is stronger than their opponent. "In this stage of the Champions League, only the champions of their countries participate. The analysis conducted after the draw showed that our opponents have experience of playing in the European Cup. Several players play in the national team of Malta, whose fighting spirit and ability to fight to the very end we saw during the match with Azerbaijan. No one has the right to claim in advance that we have already passed the first stage. We will try to gather information about our opponents. We respect any opponent. Football is now at a stage where there are no strong or weak opponents. We always go on the field to win. It's necessary to respect the opponent and prepare seriously," Qurbanov told R+.

Valletta FC was founded in 1943. The team holds home games at Ta'Qali Stadium, which seats 18,000 people. Valletta formed through the merger of three clubs - Valletta Prestons, Valletta St. Paul's and Valletta United, which was a two-time champion before World War II. Valletta is currently coached by Gilbert Agius, a 22-time champion of Malta, 13-time holder of the Cup and 10-time winner of the National Super Cup. The highest achievement of Valletta in the Champions League and the Euroleague is getting into the second stage of the qualifying tournament. Last season the club lost to Minsk from Belarus (1:1 and 0:2) in the Euroleague. Karabakh will play the first game on 15-16 July in Malta and the second match will be held next week in Baku.

According to the former national team player of Azerbaijan and coach of the national team of players under 15 years, Aslan Karimov, Valletta are able put up a fight against Karabakh.

"I've heard about Valletta. I know that this club is one of the leading in the country and constantly represents Malta in European Cups. Even at one time, all players of Malta were concentrated in this club. In terms of the national team, heightened attention is being paid to the club. This is not a weak team. They will put up a real fight against Karabakh. However, the composition of our club is well known to me, and I'm sure that the representative of Agdam will gain the upper hand, and I highly value their chances," Karimov said R+.

Qabala

It is difficult to expect a major success from Qabala FC, which will play in European Cup for the first time in their history. The Azerbaijan Cup finalist will represent the country in the Euroleague in the first qualifying stage. The main problem of the team is the change of the head coach and the exclusion of the majority of main players from the club. After the departure of Yuriy Semin, his post was taken by Romanian Daniel Munteanu, and there is no point in demanding success from him in such a short time. After parting with players such as Ibrahima Niasse and Danijel Subotic, the club reinforced itself with Azerbaijan national team defender Ruslan Abisev. Qabala Vice-President Fariz Nacafov believes that the team will be able to go through the first stage: "We spoke with the new head coach. Munteanu said that the team will be ready for the first game. We are not weaker than our opponents and are able to get through the first stage, demonstrating our play. We believe in our footballers."

Qabala's opponent in the first stage will be Siroki Brijeg FC from a city with the same name in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Created in 1948, the club holds home games at Pecara Stadium, which seats 8,000 spectators. The team is composed mostly of local players. It is coached by Slaven Musa. Siroki Brijeg have become a national champion twice (2003/2004, 2005/2006) and held the Cup twice (2007, 2013).

Earlier, the representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina encountered Neftci in the European Cup and lost to them according to the results of two matches (2:1 and 0:1) in the 2004 Champions League.

According to Karimov, the result of Qabala's game depends on the new coach. "It's not known what players and what style of play he chooses. It's not yet known whether he will be able to instill this game style in the team in a short time. This takes time. I think it will be difficult. It's also not known whether there will be systemic changes in the tactical plan. If yes, then there will certainly be difficulties. In this case, Qabala's chances of winning will dwindle. Consider that this is the club's first appearance in the European Cup, which also creates additional difficulties," Karimov said.

Inter

Headed by Kakhaber Tskhadadze, Inter will encounter Tiraspol FC from Moldova. Although Tiraspol have not scored a big success in Europe, clubs from Moldova have always been an obstacle for Azerbaijani teams. Time will tell what will happen this time. In an interview with R+, Inter President Georgiy Nikolov said that his team must go through the first stage: "Let's be realistic. Our team has to get through at least two stages. But will we be able to achieve this? Our opponents are weak. Moldovan teams have always created problems for clubs from Azerbaijan. So we must be careful. Before the first match, we need to solve the problem with the strikers."

Talking about Inter's opponent, it should be noted that the club created in 1992 previously represented the nation's capital Chisinau and was called Constructor. Under this name, they won the Cup of Moldova twice (1996 and 2000). In 2001, the club moved to Ciobruci, and a year later to Tiraspol and changed their name in honour of the city they represent. Becoming a national champion the only time in 1996, the club represented Moldova in the Champions League for the first time in its history, but was eliminated in the first round. The debut of Tiraspol in the European Cup was not successful. In 2006, the team won the right to play in the Intertoto Cup, winning bronze medals for their country. Breaking the resistance of MKT-Araz FC and Lech, Tiraspol were unable to beat Austrian Ried.

The team won the Cup of Moldova for the third time in 2013 under the leadership of head coach Vlad Goian. Tiraspol have many foreign players - Spaniard Eric Barroso, Bulgarians Dimitar Petkov and Georgi Karaneychey, Ukrainians Yevhen Zarichnyuk and Serhiy Shapoval, Romanian Bogdan Hausi, etc.

As the silver medallist of the 2013/2014 Moldova Championship, Tiraspol hold home games at Sheriff Stadium (with a capacity of 13,300 people).

Neftci

As the winner of the Azerbaijan Cup, Neftci will join the fight from the second classification stage of the Euroleague. Boyukaga Haciyev's team will encounter the winner of the Koper (Slovenia) - Celik (Montenegro) couple. Who will be Neftci's opponent will become known on 10 July. However, for the head coach of the "oilmen", Boyukaga Haciyev, it does not matter: "The draw is the will of Allah. We don't know exactly who will be our opponent. This will become known on 10 July. Personally, I'm getting ready to see the matches between these teams both on 3 July in Slovenia and on 10 July in Montenegro. After that, I will have a full idea about these teams. We, as always, will go on the field in the fighting mood and with the desire to win and go to the next stage. Frankly speaking, today we are not afraid at all and do not shun the opponent. First of all, we must think of ourselves and properly prepare the team for these matches. We're already working in this direction in Bolu, and it's coming to an end. We will likely summarize the result at training in Austria."

Neftci will hold their first match at home. However, Boyukaga Haciyev considers it unimportant. "It doesn't matter where the first game will be held - at home or away. The order of the summands doesn't affect the sum. In any case, we'll meet twice. If this team plays in Europe, they can't be a weak opponent. These clubs are the best in their countries. We appreciate and respect opponents. We will be preparing for these games very seriously. Neftci will hold their first match on 17 July at their own stadium, and the return game will be held on 24 July.

According to Karimov, Neftci's opponent will be the representative of Slovenia. "Changes in football in this country are evident. Neftci will also have a hard time. There have been changes in the team and Rasad Sadiqov has left. Last season the team experienced ups and downs in the championship. It's difficult without stability in the European Cup. A stable team is an important factor in games with unfamiliar opponents in the European Cup. It's difficult for a new team, because opponents don't stand still and take all necessary measures," Karimov said.

Thus, here comes the moment we've been waiting a whole year. Adventures of Azerbaijani clubs begin in Europe. At least one in four of our clubs should get through to the group stage. At least two clubs have to experience the excitement of the playoffs. Do not forget that the level of the Azerbaijani championship and the development of our football manifest themselves when clubs play in the European Cup.