Azerbaijan enjoys best week in history of European club football

Azerbaijani clubs have completed their most successful week ever in European competition, recording three victories and no defeats in UEFA qualifiers.

In the Champions League second qualifying round, Qarabag defeated Ireland’s Shelbourne 3-0 in Dublin. In the Europa Conference League, Zira drew 1-1 at home with Croatia’s Hajduk, while debutant Araz-Nakhchivan beat Greece’s Aris 2-1 in Baku. Sabah secured a 2-0 away win over Moldova’s Petrocub.

In total, Azerbaijani clubs earned 3.5 points (or 0.875 coefficient points) for the UEFA country ranking, the best result since the 2022/23 season.

Azerbaijan currently sits in 29th place with 18.125 points. It is likely to overtake Russia (18.299) next week, whose clubs are suspended but still receive a yearly compensation score. The next target is 27th-placed Ukraine with 18.475 points, while Bulgaria (16.875) remains close behind in 30th.

N.Tebrizli