- Maccabi Tel-Aviv are the clear form team having won three, drawn one and lost one of their last five matches.
- Sheriff Tiraspol have won three, drawn one and lost one of their last five.
- Maccabi won 5-0 in the last head-to-head of this UEFA Europa League Qualification 2026 tie to take the tie in hand.
Maccabi to complete job
Maccabi Tel-Aviv are the rightful 1.49 favourites to beat FC Sheriff Tiraspol in Georgia this Thursday, and the bookies have got this right.
Kenny Miller has made a marked impact since taking over the reins of Maccabi on the 1st July 2026, but his side really declared themselves on the European stage when they battered Sheriff 5-0 in the reverse fixture. That was the statement win, and the Moldavians have their work cut out to recover from that.
Miller's side have since won a 3-1 Super Cup victory over Hapoel Beer-Sheva to make it three wins from three coming into this fixture, but the 5-0 rout of Sheriff is all anyone is talking about.
Maccabi Tel-Aviv are a high-energy team, averaging 2.50 goals per match scored and 1.50 goals per match conceded across all competitions, and they should be ready for the clash on Thursday.
Sheriff will find it hard to match Maccabi's intensity
Victor Mihailov has led Sheriff since 1 June 2025, and the opponents are by no means easy beats.
However, Sheriff do not have the players or the squad to match the sheer intensity of Maccabi, and they come into this clash on the back of a 5-0 defeat that will have shaken them to the core.
A 1-0 win over Aluminij and a 3-2 victory over CS Petrocub in the league got Sheriff going, but the 5-0 defeat to Maccabi has stopped that momentum dead in its tracks.
The Moldavians have won six, drawn three and lost just one of their last 10 matches in all competitions, but this is a completely different proposition, and Sheriff are not the same class as Maccabi.
Teams to take the win with goals
We're going to back Maccabi to win and take the match in hand in Georgia. At 1.65, the Over 2.5 goals market also appeals.
Maccabi play a 4-3-3 system based on width, aggressive full-backs and midfield runners, and they should try and pin Sheriff back and overload the channels.
Sheriff will look to sit in a 4-2-3-1 or a narrow 4-3-3, but their preference for defensive shape, counters and set pieces isn't suited to this clash.
Maccabi's front three should be able to run at Sheriff and score goals, but the Israeli side do leak chances and Sheriff have scored 14 goals at an average of 1.40 per match across all competitions, so we're expecting a lively match.
Sayed Abu Farkhi is Maccabi's main man with two goals in one UEFA Europa League Qualification 2026 appearance, but Sheriff are capable of getting on the scoresheet too.
