The first leg of the second qualifying round of the 2025/26 Conference League between Ararat-Armenia (Armenia) and Universitatea Cluj (Romania) will take place on July 24 at the Armenian Football Academy Stadium in Yerevan. Ararat-Armenia vs. Universitatea Cluj: prediction, betting tips, and statistics.
Ararat-Armenia
The team earned the right to play in the Conference League by finishing second in the Armenian championship. This will be the club's fourth participation in this European competition, with their best result coming last season when they reached the third qualifying round.
In the offseason, Ararat-Armenia appointed Portuguese coach Tulipa as their new head coach.
- More than two goals have not been scored in 4 of the club's last 5 home matches in the Conference League.
- The team has failed to win 8 of their last 9 home European matches (6 draws, 2 losses).
- Ararat-Armenia has not scored more than once at home in 6 of their last 7 international matches.
Predicted lineup for Ararat-Armenia (4-2-1-3)
Henrikh Avagyan – Aleksandr Pavlovets, Edgar Grigoryan, Junior Julio, Kamo Hovhannisyan – Karen Muradyan, Hovhannes Harutyunyan – Jonathan Alexander Duarte Duran – Marius Noubissi, Armen Ambartsumyan, Tenton Yenne.
Universitatea Cluj
In the last Romanian championship, the club finished fourth, earning the right to play in the Conference League. This will be the team's first European experience in the 21st century, with their last international appearance dating back to the 1972/73 season. Notably, the new season in the national championship has already begun, and the club secured a resounding victory in the first round.
- In 8 of their last 11 away matches in the championship, there were no goals exchanged.
- Universitatea Cluj conceded in 6 of their last 7 away matches in the Superliga.
- The team scored at least two goals in 6 of their last 8 matches in the national championship.
Predicted lineup for Universitatea Cluj (4-3-1-2)
Ștefan Lefter – Elio Capradossi, Andrei Artyan, Iulian Cristea, Alexandru Chipciu – Ovidiu Bic, Dan Nistor, Alessandro Murgia – Mamadou Thiam – Issouf Macalou, Jovo Lukic.
Referee
Dmitry Dmitriev (Belarus)
Matches – 5 (International matches, 2022/23–2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 24;
Average yellow cards per match – 4.8;
Red cards shown – 0;
Average fouls per match – 21;
Penalties – 20%.
Match Prediction: Ararat-Armenia vs. Universitatea Cluj
The Armenians have been regular participants in the Conference League qualifiers in recent seasons. In their last five home matches in this tournament, the team has not conceded more than one goal. Moreover, this has been the case in 10 of their last 13 European home matches. With a new coach who has yet to manage an official match, Ararat-Armenia is unlikely to take risks and play open football, leaving gaps in defense.
Universitatea Cluj will play their first European match in 50 years, which may affect the players' confidence, especially in an away game. The Romanian club is unlikely to play aggressively from the start. Even in the national championship, the team has not scored more than one goal in their last eight games.
Considering all these factors, my prediction is Universitatea Cluj Individual Total Under 1.5
* The starting lineup for each team is based on their last match.