Taking part in their first-ever Champions League match since the competition's rebranding, Maltese champions Hamrun Spartans host Israeli powerhouses Maccabi Haifa at the Centenary Stadium on Tuesday, in the first leg of their first-round qualifying tie.
Either Farul Constanta or Sheriff Tiraspol will await the victors of this battle in round two, while a spot in the Europa Conference League second qualifying round will be the losers' consolation prize.
Match preview
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Despite ending their 30-year wait for another Maltese Premier League crown in the 2020-21 campaign, Hamrun Spartans were banned from trying their hand in the Champions League due to their involvement in a match-fixing scandal back in 2013.
Burned bridges with UEFA have since been rebuilt after that expulsion and failed appeal, though, and Tas-Sikkina will now represent Malta in the top tier of European football for the first time since the 1991-92 season, the final year that it was known as the European Cup.
Hamrun Spartans' first-round affair with Benfica that year ended in a 10-0 aggregate obliteration, while their previous three appearances in the European Cup were also short-lived, as they fell in the first round to Dundee United in 1983, Rapid Vienna in 1987 and Nentori Tirane - despite a first-leg 2-1 win - in 1988.
However, the hosts were by far and away the top dogs in Malta last season, taking 69 points from their 26 games - conceding a mere 10 goals in the process - to finish 19 points clear of second-placed Birkirkara and become champions of Malta for the ninth time.
Now led by former Pescara head coach Luciano Zauri, Hamrun Spartans reached the qualifying round for the 2022-23 Europa Conference League - losing 7-4 on aggregate to Partizan Belgrade - while their solitary warm-up friendly earlier this month ended in a convincing 2-0 success over Birkirkara.
Their upcoming opponents will be in no mood to hand out any continental pointers, though, as Maccabi Haifa begin the arduous journey to another potential group-stage appearance after pitting their wits against three of the continent's big boys last term.
Reaching the competition proper for just the third time, Maccabi Haifa were rewarded with clashes against Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and Benfica in Group H, where they remarkably came so close yet so far to pipping the former to third place.
Despite securing a famous 2-0 win over their Bianconeri counterparts on matchday four, conceding 13 goals in their final two games with PSG and Benfica proved to be their downfall, as Maccabi Haifa missed out on a Europa League knockout-round playoff place on goal difference.
However, the Greens comfortably secured a third successive Israeli Premier League title last season and have now opted for a change in management, taking a punt on 37-year-old Messay Dego following Barak Bakhar's move to Red Star in Serbia.
Maccabi Haifa lost two of their three warm-up friendlies earlier this summer, though - going down to Slavia Prague and St Polten - but avoiding just a second Champions League first-round qualifying exit is a more pressing matter for the inexperienced Dego.
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Team News
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No fewer than eight players have touched down in Malta to represent Hamrun Spartans in the 2023-24 season, including a familiar name in 40-year-old goalkeeper Federico Marchetti, once of Lazio, Genoa and Torino.
The former Italy international will likely act as backup to Henry Bonello in between the sticks, while Swedish forward Kalle Holmberg has returned to his homeland with Orebro following an ultimately unsuccessful spell in Hamrun.
Last season's top scorer Elvis Mashike - who netted 18 times in the top flight - has also left for pastures new, so new signing Uros Djuranovic could be immediately brought in for his competitive debut.
Maccabi Haifa have also undergone a rather significant summer of change, and one notable departure comes in the shape of Omer Atzili, who memorably scored both of the Greens' goals in last year's triumph over Juventus.
Atzili will now be representing Al-Ain FC in the UAE Pro League, while goalkeeper Josh Cohen and midfielder Mohammed Abu Fani have also moved on, but the visitors have also added a plethora of new names to their ranks.
Germany Under-20 striker Erik Shuranov and French left-back Pierre Cornud will be donning the Greens' colours this term, as will 37-year-old playmaker Lior Refaelov, who returns after a trophy-laden spell in Belgium.
Hamrun Spartans possible starting lineup:
Bonello; Borg, Bilic, Bjelcic; Corbalan, Krstic, Prsa, Camenzuli; Mbong, Djuranovic, Ederson
Maccabi Haifa possible starting lineup:
Nitzan; Sundgren, Seck, Kandil, Cornud; Mohamed, Haziza; Jaber, Chery, Saba; David
We say: Hamrun Spartans 0-3 Maccabi Haifa
Maccabi Haifa may be moving forward without last year's Champions League hero Atzili, but the likes of Tjaronn Chery can continue to shine for the Greens on the continental stage, and we can only envisage one outcome in this match.
Hamrun Spartans' defensive discipline in the Maltese division last term was admirable, but they should endure a harsh welcome back to life in the big time as Maccabi Haifa stroll to a convincing win ahead of the second leg on July 18.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
