KuPS vs Sabah preview

Europe flag 2026/2027 Champions League, Europe
Savon Sanomat Areena Today - 3:00 PM
Champions League
KuPS KuPS
Sabah Sabah
KICKOFF : Today - 3:00 PM
2nd Qualifying Round Leg 2 of 2 Aggregate : 0 - 1

CONTEXT

KuPS welcomes Sabah to Savon Sanomat Areena for the second leg of their Champions League second qualifying round tie. Sabah claimed a narrow 1-0 victory in the opening fixture and leads the aggregate 0-1. The visitors carry a clear power advantage of 32 points and post a stronger form score of 50 against KuPS's 16.67. Both sides operate with limited recent outing data, leaving structural and efficiency profiles somewhat opaque. Set-piece metrics register low confidence levels and rely on proxy calculations. The encounter pits KuPS's home resilience against Sabah's superior overall metrics in an international cup setting. Analytical focus rests on how the home side might overcome the deficit while Sabah seeks to protect its slender lead through controlled possession and defensive organisation.

TL;DR

  • Structural: Sabah holds a significant power advantage of 32 points over KuPS.
  • Form: Sabah enters with a superior form score of 50 compared to KuPS's 16.67.
  • Squad: Squad details for both teams remain limited in available records.
  • Efficiency: Efficiency metrics are unavailable for this qualifying encounter.
  • Transition: Transition play analysis lacks specific data points for either side.
  • Set pieces: Set piece data shows low confidence with proxy usage for both teams.
  • xVariable: Sabah registers as the stronger team across overall power metrics.
  • Market: KuPS 31.3% (Δ+0%) | Draw 27.2% (Δ+0%) | Sabah 41.6% (Δ+0%).
No standings statistics available.
No head-to-head records found.
0.5+ goals: 85%
1.5+ goals: 70%
2.5+ goals: 50%
3.5+ goals: 25%
Confidence: High (≥8 matches)

Quality vs Volume

Home: xG 1.8, Shots 12, xG/Shot 0.15
Away: xG 1.5, Shots 14, xG/Shot 0.11

Open Play vs Set Play

Open Play: 65%
Set Play: 35%

Expected Points

TeamxPts
Home1.8
Away1.2
ℹ️ Methodology: Expected Goals (xG) measures shot quality
Jan 25 vs Team A
Feb 1 vs Team B
Feb 8 vs Team C
KuPS M. Nuutinen
M. Nuutinen
VS
Sabah V. Dambrauskas
V. Dambrauskas
1
Avg Points / Game (Last 100 Matches)
3
1 i
Last 6 Opponents
Sabah Rank: L
Vardar Rank: L
Vardar Rank: W
Avg Points / Game (Last 6 Matches)
3 i
Last 6 Opponents
KuPS Rank: W
The New Saints Rank: 63 W
The New Saints Rank: 63 W
0
Head to Head (Wins - Draws - Losses)
0 - 0 - 1
1
No sidelined player data available.

Win Probabilities

Live Win Probability (90 Min)
Home KuPS
31.25%
Draw
27.18%
Away Sabah
41.57%

Team Power Ranking

i
What is Power Ranking?
Power score: composite of opponent-weighted form (last 6 & 20 games) and league position over last 3 seasons.
18
50
0 (Weakest) 100 (Strongest)
Metric
KuPS
Sabah
Power Score
18
50
League Position
-
-
Global Rank
-
-

Form Analysis Opponent-Weighted

Line chart of recent results (points/trend). Friendlies excluded by default. Hover for opponent, result, xG/xGA and power ranking — based on last 6 matches.

–
vs
KuPS — Opponent-weighted form score
Sabah — Opponent-weighted form score
Win (3 pts) Draw (1 pt) Loss (0 pts) KuPS Sabah

Team Head to Head Last 6 Seasons

Summary of 1 match between these sides — filtered by competition and venue context.

KuPS KuPS Home
1 matches
Sabah Sabah Away
Match Record
0
Wins
1
0
Draws
0
1
Losses
0
Goals
0
Goals Scored
1
1
Goals Conceded
0
-1
Goal Difference
+1
Expected Goals
0
xG
0
0
xGA
0

Data last updated: 2026-07-27T00:07:06+00:00

General Information

Date & Time
Jul 28, 2026, 03:00 PM
Competition
2026/2027 Champions League, Europe · 2nd Qualifying Round · Leg 2 of 2 · Aggregate : 0 - 1
Stadium
Savon Sanomat Areena
Capacity
5300
Pitch Surface
Artificial turf
Weather
☀️ 12°C, Fair
Referees
Gal Laibuvitz
Roei Hassan
Yossi Babayof
Dekel Tzino

Squad

Referee : Gal Laibuvitz

Squad ▼

1
Johannes Kreidl
Johannes Kreidl Goalkeeper
12
Hemmo Riihimäki
Hemmo Riihimäki Goalkeeper
37
Kasperi Silen
Kasperi Silen Goalkeeper
4
Kasim Adams Nuhu
Kasim Adams Nuhu Defender
3
Saku Heiskanen
Saku Heiskanen Defender
—
Ricardo Jorge Silva Araujo
Ricardo Jorge Silva Araujo Defender
33
Taneli Hämäläinen
Taneli Hämäläinen Defender
25
Clinton Antwi
Clinton Antwi Defender
23
Arttu Lötjönen
Arttu Lötjönen Defender
28
Brahima Magassa
Brahima Magassa Defender
29
Akseli Puukko
Akseli Puukko Defender
32
Rasmus Tikkanen
Rasmus Tikkanen Defender
8
Petteri Pennanen
Petteri Pennanen Midfielder
7
Jerry Voutilainen
Jerry Voutilainen Midfielder
16
Tommi Jyry
Tommi Jyry Midfielder
17
Arttu Heinonen
Arttu Heinonen Midfielder
22
Torai Sihao
Torai Sihao Midfielder
10
Valentín Román Gasc
Valentín Román Gasc Midfielder
26
Aaro Toivonen
Aaro Toivonen Midfielder
13
Niilo Kujasalo
Niilo Kujasalo Midfielder
14
Samuel Pasanen
Samuel Pasanen Midfielder
18
Eemil Tanninen
Eemil Tanninen Midfielder
20
Piotr Parzyszek
Piotr Parzyszek Attacker
9
Gustav Engvall
Gustav Engvall Attacker
11
Jaime José Moreno Ciorciari
Jaime José Moreno Ciorciari Attacker
6
Saku Savolainen
Saku Savolainen Attacker
21
Joslyn Luyeye-Lutumba
Joslyn Luyeye-Lutumba Attacker
19
Calvin Kabuye
Calvin Kabuye Attacker
24
Bob Nii Armah
Bob Nii Armah Attacker
Referee : Gal Laibuvitz

Squad ▼

92
Stas Pokatilov
Stas Pokatilov Goalkeeper
1
Amin Ramazanov
Amin Ramazanov Goalkeeper
17
Tellur Mütəllimov
Tellur Mütəllimov Defender
80
Akim Zedadka
Akim Zedadka Defender
3
Steve Solvet
Steve Solvet Defender
27
Tymoteusz Puchacz
Tymoteusz Puchacz Defender
5
Rəhman Daşdəmirov
Rəhman Daşdəmirov Defender
33
Erivaldo Almeida Santos Junior
Erivaldo Almeida Santos Junior Defender
—
Abdulla Rzayev
Abdulla Rzayev Defender
4
Aiden McCarthy
Aiden McCarthy Defender
10
Aleksey Isaev
Aleksey Isaev Midfielder
13
Ivan Lepinjica
Ivan Lepinjica Midfielder
22
Zinédine Ould Khaled
Zinédine Ould Khaled Midfielder
88
Rodrigo Francisco Pinto Vieira Fernandes
Rodrigo Francisco Pinto Vieira Fernandes Midfielder
16
Rauf Rustamli
Rauf Rustamli Midfielder
6
Abdula Xaybulayev
Abdula Xaybulayev Midfielder
7
Umarali Rahmonaliyev
Umarali Rahmonaliyev Midfielder
21
Veljko Simić
Veljko Simić Attacker
20
Joy-Lance Mickels
Joy-Lance Mickels Attacker
11
Kaheem Parris
Kaheem Parris Attacker
99
Patrick Orphe Mbina
Patrick Orphe Mbina Attacker
34
Xander Severina
Xander Severina Attacker
9
Khayal Aliyev
Khayal Aliyev Attacker
19
Aaron Malouda
Aaron Malouda Attacker
23
Younes Lachaab
Younes Lachaab Attacker

CONCLUSION

KuPS must generate attacking momentum at home to erase the one-goal deficit while managing the threat posed by a more powerful opponent. Sabah will likely emphasise defensive structure and exploit transitions to maintain its aggregate advantage. With efficiency and set-piece insights constrained, emphasis falls on broader power differentials and form trajectories. The second leg offers KuPS an opportunity to leverage venue familiarity, yet Sabah's superior metrics suggest it holds the tools to control proceedings. Both teams face the challenge of adapting without extensive recent performance data. The outcome will hinge on whether KuPS can convert home pressure into goals or if Sabah's overall strength prevails across the full ninety minutes.