Pafos vs Red Star Belgrade Prediction and Betting Tips

Pafos will face Red Star Belgrade at the Alphamega Stadium on Tuesday in the second leg of their 2025-26 UEFA Champions League playoff round qualifying clash. The home side have exceeded expectations in their quest for Champions League football this summer and are one positive result away from a maiden appearance in the continental showpiece.

They picked up a 2-1 win in their first-leg clash last week, with Joao Correia scoring a stunning opener in the first minute of the contest before Pepe doubled their advantage from the spot in the second half.

Red Star Belgrade have been bright in their domestic campaign this season, picking up four wins from four so far but have work to do when they return to the continental stage this week. They were disappointing in their first-leg clash on home turf last week, finding themselves two goals down before Bruno Duarte pulled one back for the Serbian outfit in the second half.

The visitors' league clash on Saturday was postponed and they will hope the extra preparation time afforded to them provides the push they need to overturn last week's deficit.

Pafos vs Red Star Belgrade Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

Tuesday's game will mark the second meeting between Pafos and Red Star following their maiden matchup last week.
The visitors have had 10 competitive meetings against Cypriot opposition. They have won three of those games, lost once and drawn the other six.
Pafos are targeting their maiden appearance in the group stages of the Champions League. Crvena zvezda, meanwhile, are pushing for a third consecutive appearance in the continental showpiece.
Red Star have managed just one clean sheet in their last seven games across all competitions.

Pafos vs Red Star Belgrade Prediction

Pafos are on a brilliant four-game winning streak and have lost just one of their last 11 competitive outings dating back to last season. They are underdogs heading into Tuesday's game but superbly secured an advantage on the road last week, and only need a draw here to advance to the main stages of the Champions League.

The Star remain the stronger of the two teams despite last week's result but will need something extra special to come back and win this one on hostile ground. We expect this match to end in a draw.

Prediction: Pafos 1-1 Red Star Belgrade

Pafos vs Red Star Belgrade Betting Tips

Tip 1 - Result: Draw

Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Under 2.5 goals (Six of the hosts' last seven matches have produced fewer than 2.5 goals)

Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES (Both sides have found the back of the net in six of the visitors' last seven matches)

About the author

Jedidiah is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda, who has been covering match previews for more than 3 years. Currently pursuing an engineering degree from the University of Ibadan, he conducts thorough research and ensures to be up-to-date with football news across the globe to create the most accurate previews.

A Manchester United fan, Jedidiah fell in love with football and the Red Devils since their UEFA Champions League triumph over Chelsea in 2008. He is a big fan of Robert Lewandowski and his historic performances from 2020, but feels that only Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are capable of replicating the Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry. His all-time favorite manager is Carlo Ancelotti due to the Italian's remarkable composure in difficult moments of a contest. Spain's 1-0 win over Netherlands in the final of the 2010 FIFA World Cup is etched in his memory forever.

A true student of the game, Jedidiah relishes identifying hidden gems from lower-tiered leagues such as the EFL Championship and the Eredivisie. When not creating previews, he likes playing football and reading books.

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