RB Salzburg vs Dynamo Kyiv

Red Bull Arena forms the backdrop for the return leg of a high-profile Champions League qualification playoff tie between RB Salzburg and Dynamo Kyiv.

An all-important 2-0 first-leg win in Lublin last week could go a long way in strengthening Salzburg’s record in the Champions League playoff round, with the Austrian powerhouse looking for a third aggregate victory at this stage. It’s been a dream start for new manager Pepijn Lijnders thus far, as he’s only failed to win once across seven competitive games in charge of Salzburg (W6, D1). Lijnders’ men have enjoyed a perfect start to their new Austrian Bundesliga campaign (W3) but got a weekend off to prepare for this season-defining contest. The omens look good for Salzburg’s bid to overcome Dynamo Kyiv, considering they’ve avoided defeat in their last seven Champions League qualifiers on home soil (W5, D2), netting 2+ goals on six occasions.

Meanwhile, visiting Dynamo Kyiv have a mountain to climb, risking a defeat in the Champions League playoff round for a third successive season. Ominously for the Ukrainian giants, they lost both away legs at this stage in the past two seasons without scoring, casting doubt on their fragile hopes of turning this tie on its head. It’s been three years since they made it through the qualifying rounds into the Champions League proper. On a rare positive note, Dynamo Kyiv had won five of their six competitive matches this season before slipping to a first-leg loss a week ago, bagging at least two goals five times. However, they only kept two clean sheets in that run, which could diminish their comeback prospects.