The Cypriot showdown between Pafos and Omonia Nicosia lacked excitement in the first leg (1:1), with both teams struggling to create clear-cut chances. Their prospects of progressing to the last 16 remain evenly balanced, but the return leg is also unlikely to be a high-scoring encounter.
Pafos extended their unbeaten run to eight matches after a home victory over Apollon (1:0) at the weekend. Notably, only one of these eight matches saw over 2.5 goals in regular time. In the first leg in Nicosia, Pafos missed a penalty but were rescued late by Mislav Oršić, who has mostly been used as an impact sub since joining the club.
Unlike Pafos, Omonia lack star names in their squad but remain resilient. In the first leg, excluding their converted penalty, they only generated 0.77 xG, while goalkeeper Fabiano Freitas showcased his shot-stopping ability with four saves. Omonia are also on an impressive nine-match unbeaten streak and defeated Pafos away (1:0) in December, where Stevan Jovetić’s stoppage-time strike was their only shot on target in the entire match.
Since March 2024, Pafos and Omonia have surpassed over 2.5 goals just once in five head-to-head encounters. With both sides prioritising defensive solidity, we should expect another cagey affair with limited goal-scoring opportunities.
