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2 days ago
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Sparta Prague face Red Bull Salzburg on matchday one of the new league phase in the Champions League on Wednesday evening.
Neither side were in league action over the weekend, as floods across Central and Eastern Europe saw numerous top-flight games postponed.
Match preview
© Imago
While UEFA are sometimes criticised for protecting the elite, especially in the Champions League, the meeting of these two clubs at this stage goes against that idea, as teams from Czechia (or Czechoslovakia) and Austria will meet in the top tier of European competition for the first time in 41 years.
Sparta qualifying for the Champions League after 19 years away is a big factor in that, as they will play their first match at this level since a 0-0 draw with FC Thun back in 2005.
When Czech football was at a real peak in the late 1990s/early 2000s, Sparta were at the forefront, reaching the group stage seven times in nine seasons.
However, it was clear their talent was fading towards the end of that run, as Sparta failed to win any of their final 14 Champions League matches before the recent drought - the fourth-longest current winless run of any club, behind only FCSB, Genk and Maribor.
Sparta have had to endure some dark days too before getting back to the top level, losing in qualifying to teams such as Denizlispor, Vaslui, Spartak Subotica, and neighbours Zilina from across the Slovakian border.
Lars Friis's side will also hope to be more competitive against the elite than they were last season, when the Czech side were thrashed 11-2 on aggregate by Liverpool in the Europa League.
The Maroons have not lost since that rotten week in March though, which also included a 4-0 loss at Viktoria Plzen, as they sit top of Czech league with 19 points from seven games.
It was the playoff win over Malmo which has been the big talking point in the capital over the summer though, as Lukas Haraslin inspired them to see off the Swedish side 4-0 on aggregate.
The clubs have met previously despite the visitor's relatively modest European history, in Champions League qualifying in 1997, when the Austrians were known as Wustenrot Salzburg, long before the Red Bull takeover, and Sparta won 3-0 on aggregate.
© Imago
That acquisition has transformed the club though, with the Champions League now being familiar territory for Salzburg, who are participating in their sixth straight group/league phase.
Only Shakhtar Donetsk have equalled that feat from outside Europe's top-five leagues, but new manager Pep Lijnders will be tasked with taking the next step, and making the club competitive further into European competitions.
Salzburg have only reached the Champions League knockouts once, and that ended with a 7-1 second-leg defeat to Bayern Munich in the last 16 in 2022.
Lijnders has already made a promising start, beating Twente and Dynamo Kiev to get this far, with Salzburg needing to go through qualification after surrendering their league title for the first time in 11 years to Sturm Graz last season.
Arresting a run of just one win in 10 Champions League away games will be the order of the day here, as Salzburg will look to make a strong start against one of their lowest-ranked opponents.
Sparta Prague Champions League form:
Sparta Prague form (all competitions):
Red Bull Salzburg Champions League form:
Red Bull Salzburg form (all competitions):
Team News
© Imago
Friis should be able to welcome back wing-back Angelo Preciado after he played for Ecuador during the international break following a brief spell out injured.
Sparta duo Jakub Pesek and Roman Mokrovics are both doubtful for this one, but Spaniard Imanol Garcia is a confirmed absentee after tearing his ACL just 23 minutes into his league debut last month.
Jan Kuchta left the club over the summer, but replacement Albion Rrahmani has made a blistering start since arriving from Rapid Bucharest, scoring two in his first two games, as well as notching for Kosovo during the break.
Salzburg boss Lijnders will hope to have two players he knows very well available to him here in the form of Stefan Bajcetic and Bobby Clark, who are both yet to make their debuts since joining from Liverpool.
Maurits Kjaergaard and Fernando could be sidelined for a while after recent injuries, while Karim Konate and Daouda Guindo are also not ready to return yet.
Left-back Aleksa Terzic has missed the last few Salzburg games with injury, but was in the squad for Serbia during the internationals, so should feature.
Sparta Prague possible starting lineup:
Vindahl; Vitik, Panak, Sorensen; Preciado, Laci, Kairinen, Rynes; Birmancevic, Rrahmani, Haraslin
Red Bull Salzburg possible starting lineup:
Blaswich; Van der Brempt, Piatkowski, Baidoo, Terzic; Bidstrup, Bajcetic, Clark; Nene, Yeo, Gloukh
We say: Sparta Prague 2-2 Red Bull Salzburg
In front of what will be a rapturous atmosphere in Prague, a lack of match sharpness should cause no problems despite neither side having played in almost three weeks.
Haraslin will be crucial for the hosts, but Salzburg's conveyor belt of young talent will keep on producing and could treat onlookers to an entertaining game here.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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