Two clubs chasing UEFA Champions League glory will do battle today in a match between BATE Borisov and Athletic Bilbao. The group-stage match scheduled for 2:45 p.m. ET will be held at Haradski Stadium in Barysaw and can be live streamed here free. Additional TV coverage can be found on Fox Soccer Plus.
BATE manager Aleksandr Yermakovich had this to offer ahead of today's European encounter (via UEFA): "We have drawn our last three games in the league, which is disappointing. It is not the best way to build up to this match, but we have seen worse and recovered well. We hope it'll be the same and we believe in our players. I'm sure we'll approach the game with a good mentality."
"There's no need to introduce Athletic," he added. "This is a team from a top league, where they finished fourth. That says a lot. Such teams usually boast players with great technique who are good individually, so I can say only positive things. It'll be interesting to test ourselves against such opposition."
"We want to make amends for the loss at Porto and to prove we are able to play and compete with solid European teams and great players," Yermakovich continued. "We are determined to make up for that loss and we will do our best."
Tactical Preview
Player to Watch: Athletic Bilbao's Aritz Aduriz remains the club's premier attacking option atop the formation. The 33-year-old has two goals in six appearances and is averaging 2.2 shots per match.
BATE Borisov's Projected Lineup (4-4-2): Chernik; Khagush, Filipenko, Polyakov, Mladenović; A Volodko, Aleksievich, Olekhnovich; Pavlov; Gordeychuk, Rodionov
Athletic Bilbao's Projected Lineup (4-2-3-1): Iraizoz; De Marcos, Gurpegi, Laporte, Balenziaga; Iturraspe, Rico, Beñat, Susaeta, Muniain; Aduriz
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
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