We're already at the business end of the UEA Champions League qualifying rounds as the first leg of the playoffs goes underway on Tuesday. It also spans into Wednesday in which the remaining three matches are scheduled to take place. One of those games will be played at the Ghelamco Arena between Gent and Dynamo Kyiv in a highly-promising encounter.
Both sides will be clashing in Europe for only the second time following a double-header back in 2010. The side from Kyiv was absolutely dominant winning both games comfortably. Gent has become a more stable top 4 side given their expert recruitment system. As a result, we don't expect this encounter to be as easy for the Ukrainians.
The Buffalos in desperate need of positives
Gent hasn't been at their best since the start of the 2020/2021 season. They're currently in 13th place with only two wins from six league games. However, the recent appointment of Wim De Dekker has changed things up a bit. The new head coach has registered wins in the two games since his appointment. Will he be able to guide the team to the UEFA Champions League group stage?
The Buffalos registered only their second win of the season in a narrow away win at Mouscron. With only fourteen minutes of play gone, Dorsch opened the scoring much to the delight of the Gent faithful. They managed to hold on to that lead as De Dekker registered a win in his first league game.
Dynamo Kyiv keen on etching their names onto another UCL group stage campaign
Dynamo Kyiv have lots of UEFA Champions League experience to boot. However, given that the Ukrainians haven't made it through to the group stages since the 2016/17 season, they would be looking towards booking themselves a place in the showpiece event this season.
Mircea Lucescu and the boys recently kicked off the new campaign in the Ukrainian top-flight. Although they stumbled on matchday two, Olimpic bounced back with a comfortable 3-1 win over FC Lviv. Mykola Shaparenko produced a man of the match performance with a goal and an assist in the final few minutes of the game to bag the spoils for his side.
Gent vs Dynamo Kyiv Team News
Gent possible starting XI:
Roef; Fortuna, Ngadeu, Arslanagic, Castro-Montes; Dorsch, Owusu, Odjidja-Ofoe; Yaremchuk, Botaka, Depoitre
Dynamo Kyiv possible starting XI:
Bushchan; Karaveiev, Mykolenko, Syrota, Kedziora; Sydorchuk, Shaparenko; De Pena, Buialskyi, Tsygankov; Supryaga
Gent vs Dynamo Kyiv Prediction: 2-2
The Buffalos shaky start to the 2020/2021 season hasn't been overly impressive. However, the change of manager has lifted them to their feet with the side looking at a third win in a row as they welcome the Kyiv-based outfit. Dynamo Kyiv, on the other hand, are unbeaten this season, hereby setting up this match to be a UCL classic. However, we would be sitting on the fence for this UCL playoff tie with both teams expected to find the net.