Football Accumulator Tips: Wednesday 9/1 Treble for the UCL qualifiers

Molde vs Galatasaray - Galatasaray to win

Having crushed the KI Klaksvik Champions League dream earlier this month, Molde face a step-up in quality when they meet Turkish champions Galatasaray in the first leg of their qualifying playoff-round tie on Wednesday.

Erling Moe's men overcame KI 3-2 on aggregate to progress to the final hurdle, while the visitors to Aker Stadion put four past Olimpija Ljubljana without reply over two legs.

MFK's domestic form has suffered amid their continental exertions, as Moe's men have drawn their two most recent Eliteserien encounters with Sandefjord and Valerenga 2-2 and 0-0 respectively, but an 11-game unbeaten home run - during which they have kept eight clean sheets - offers some hope of a first-leg surprise.

Similarly, Galatasaray failed to stamp their authority upon their return to the Champions League preliminary rounds, as Okan Buruk's men edged out Zalgiris 3-2 on aggregate in the second round before surging to a more straightforward two-legged success over Olimpija Ljubljana.

Boasting five clean sheets from their last five matches in all competitions, Galatasaray will be firm favourites to progress to the Champions League group stages for the first time since the 2019-20 campaign, consigning a rare season without any form of European football in 2022-23 to history.

We fancy Galatasaray experience to show in this one and with a strong defence to rely on we can see them coming out as victors in this one.

Braga vs Panathinaikos - Braga to win

Having progressed to the final round of Champions League qualifying in differing circumstances, Braga and Panathinaikos commence their two-legged playoff battle at Estadio Municipal on Wednesday night.

The hosts thrashed Backa Topola 7-1 on aggregate in the penultimate preliminary stage, while their Greek foes eliminated former winners Marseille on penalties in the third round.

Artur Jorge's men went down 2-1 to Famalicao on the opening day of the top-flight campaign, but notching eight goals in their last two away matches represents the perfect tonic to that early giant killing.

Braga also have previous when it comes to Champions League qualifying playoff round battles, as their only two group-stage appearances in 2010-11 and 2012-13 were achieved via the preliminary stages, overcoming Sevilla and Udinese respectively at the final hurdle.

Unlike Braga and most other teams vying for Champions League qualification, Panathinaikos are yet to kick off their quest for domestic glory and have thus been able to focus solely on their continental endeavours, which paid off and then some during a third-round giant-killing by beating Marseille in the last round.

One or two Marseille fans may have learned the hard way about underestimating Panathinaikos, whose week's worth of rest should do them the world of good against Jorge's goal-happy Braga.

The hosts' mettle will be put to the test far more than it was against Backa Topola, but their attacking firepower will likely be too hot for Panathinaikos to handle, and the Archbishops ought to head to Athens for next week's second leg defending a slender advantage.

Maccabi Haifa vs Young Boys - Maccabi Haifa to win

With only one round separating them from the Champions League group stage, the stakes will be high when Maccabi Haifa and Young Boys meet on Wednesday, in the first leg of their playoff tie.

While the hosts - who made it through qualifying last season - started their campaign in the first round, their Swiss counterparts now enter Europe's top club competition.

Maccabi Haifa made the Champions League group stage last year, the Israeli club experienced mixed fortunes in Group H - being thumped 7-2 and 6-1 soon after writing themselves into history by beating Juventus - but having had a taste of the big-time they are now keen to book another place in the autumn action.

Though they are already well under way in their domestic season, Young Boys have yet to kick a ball in the Champions League this summer, ahead of their trip to Sammy Ofer Stadium.

The Swiss champions secured a 16th league title - and their fifth in the last six years - by comfortably topping the Super League last term, and after four rounds of the 2023-24 campaign they remain unbeaten, having won and drawn two games to date.

Both sides possess plenty of firepower and will be keen to establish a first-leg lead, so several goals could be shared in Haifa. The teams seem well-matched in many respects but we fancy the host Maccabi Haifa to edge this one.