Olympiakos vs Slovan Bratislava Match Preview

This is the first match for the playoffs of the Europa League competition between Olympiakos and Slovan Bratislava.

Olympiakos seemed unprepared in the 3nd qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League against Ludogorets and inevitably disqualified early from the competition. After the 1-1 draw of the first match in Greece, a second draw followed in the 2nd leg. The score did not change even in the half-hour extra time and the qualification was decided on penalties shoot out in favor of the Bulgarian champions.

This unexpected failure brought great whining and frustration within the team, and the qualification even in the Europa League group stage is now considered more than necessary for the Greek champions.

In the third qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League, Slovan Bratislava had no problem overcoming the obstacle of Lincoln from Gibraltar celebrating an easy qualification. Their away victory in the first away match with 3-1 essentially sent them to the next round, in the 2nd leg at home being relaxed played a 1-1 draw.

In the domestic league, Slovan Bratislava has won all 3 games played so far and is at the top of the standings with 9 points. In their last match, they prevailed easily 3-1 at home over Michalovce, in a match that was overshadowed by a dispute in the locker room between players and the team's coach at halftime.

Olympiakos is deservedly the unquestionable favorite of the match. They are a better and more experienced team than Slovan, which, however, have the advantage of having a better rhythm having played three league games so far. My pick in this match is over 2.5 goals offered at 2.05 odds.