FCSB, which is the former famous Steaua Bucharest, has already managed two preliminary rounds in the Champions League. First against Sanmarin Virtus and then against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Sparta eliminated the Irish Shamrock Rovers in the 2nd preliminary round. Now, after eight years, they will face FCSB in the same qualification phase, with whom they were eliminated after a 1:1 draw in Prague and a 0:2 loss in Romania.
“We will use the experience from last season. A year ago we did not beat Copenhagen in the 3rd preliminary round, but we will do everything to make it happen this time,” said the 28-year-old midfielder.
He drew attention to the fact that Emil Krasniqi, who previously played in another Romanian team, CFR Cluj, came to Sparta from Rapid Bucharest in the summer. “It’s an advantage for us that he knows the opponent. He’ll help us with something. But we don’t focus too much on them, we mainly focus on how we want to play,” said the midfielder, who also played for Albania at the summer Euros in Germany.
The second leg is next Tuesday. “It is always better to play the second leg at home, but we are professionals. We have to win tomorrow to go to Romania with a lead. We will do everything to win,” added the former Ajaccio player.
The winner will challenge either Malmö or PAOK Thessaloniki in the final 4th qualifying round of the Champions League. The loser awaits a fight for advancement to the main stage of the Europa League with Linz.
“There is no room to think about what awaits us in the next preliminary round. Even the two potential opponents do not know what will happen in their matches. The most important thing is Tuesday’s match, it is an amazing challenge for us. We have in our heads that even if the last “The season was great, we were missing something. We will want to show ourselves on the field. I hope the fans will push us a little more than usual,” believes Laci.
Laci also has a personal motivation, why she is looking forward to the match. After some time, he will meet coach Elias Charalambous. “I know their coach personally from Cyprus. I wish him all the best and congratulate him on the title with FCSB. I look forward to meeting you after years,” said Laci, who worked for the Cypriot teams APOEL and Levadiakos.
Charalambous is also looking forward to seeing Laci play on Tuesday: “But I hope that I will be happy after the match,” said the former Cyprus representative, acknowledging Sparta’s strength.
“We are facing a very difficult opponent. We are only focused on the first match. With each next preliminary round, the difficulty increases, that’s normal. We have to be ready for tougher and tougher matches,” said the FCSB coach.
“My players are hungry and dream of the Champions League. But dreaming is not enough, they have to be strong and focused because such matches are very difficult. I hope we get a good result. But both matches will decide, not just one,” said Charalambous, who led the Romanian team to its first title in nine years.
