Borac Banja Luka vs PAOK Prediction: More first half entertainment here

It’s all to play for in the second leg of the Champions League second-round qualification tie between Borac Banja Luka and PAOK on Wednesday (20:00) as the visitors look to protect a 3-2 lead in Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Read below for my Borac Banja Luka vs PAOK prediction and all the latest team news ahead of this return fixture at the Banja Luka City Stadium.

Football Odds

Team News

Neither side was in action on the weekend so there are no new injuries to report, and both head coaches could be tempted into naming unchanged starting XI’s on Wednesday.

Sebastian Herrera and Enver Kulasin scored Borac’s goals in Thessaloniki and will hope to complete the 90 minutes again this week. Damir Hrelja was the first Borac player substituted on last Wednesday and is probably the most likely addition to the starting line-up after scoring a winner in the previous round against Egnatia.

PAOK defender Konstantinos Koulierakis bagged a first-half brace last time out and will marshal the backline again alongside William Troost-Ekong, who struck the Greek club’s third goal last week which proved the winner.

Anrija Zivkovic and Mady Camara are among those pushing for starts.

Borac Banja Luka vs PAOK Odds

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The hosts are 18/5 to get the victory they need to at least take the tie to extra time, giving them an implied win probability of 21.7%, while the visitors are 8/13, or a 61.9% chance, to beat the Bosnians again.

The draw, which would be enough for PAOK to progress to the next round, can be backed at 3/1, and it’s 8/13 for over 2.5 total goals in regulation time.

Double Chance & Both Teams To Score – Draw or PAOK & Yes @ 1/1

PAOK were pegged back twice in Greece before emerging 3-2 victors from the first leg, so head coach Razvan Lucescu will be anxious to avoid such drama on Wednesday.

It may have been the element of surprise that caused consternation among PAOK players, and they will be confident that their first experience of playing Borac will stand them in good stead heading into the return fixture in Banja Luka.

But the hosts will also be full of belief after striking twice in the first half against the Greek Super League side, who were heavy favourites ahead of the first leg.

Neither club has started their league season yet so it’s probably to be expected that there are issues in defences, and that should lend itself to an entertaining encounter in midweek.

I think both teams can get on the scoresheet but PAOK’s experience and superior quality from the bench should see them safe.

Over 1.5 First Half Total Goals @ 11/8

There were four goals in the first half of last week’s game and we can probably expect at least a couple more in the opening 45 minutes of the return fixture.

Borac will be looking to inspire their home crowd to level up the tie while PAOK will pack plenty of punch with a forward line consisting of Brandon Thomas, Kiril Despodov, Thomas Murg and Taison, all of whom scored at least eight times last season.

Whether we quite get the four strikes seen in the first half of the first leg remains to be seen, but a couple of goals at 11/8 could be worth a punt.

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