Stage set for Sheriff shocker

By Miron Goihman

Moldovan giants FC Sheriff may be close to making a UEFA Champions League breakthrough in their fifth successive qualifying campaign .

Fifth chance
Having bowed out of the second qualifying round in their previous four attempts, Sheriff will finally reach the third qualifying round if they can overturn a 1-0 deficit against Serbia and Montenegro's FK Partizan on home soil tonight.

Magnificent stadium
After visiting the Sheriff stadium, built three years ago, Romanian footballing legend Gheorghe Hagi said: "Sheriff has a stadium which is worthy of the Champions League, now it's a matter of playing well enough to show it to the best teams in Europe."

Superb facilities
The stadium is a magnificent venue. With a sports complex, two cutting-edge arenas, eight football pitches, indoor facilities and a hotel on site, it is the pride of Tiraspol. However, as Hagi hinted, Sheriff have long been keen to show it to the world.

Winnable tie
This season, their chance may have come. Should they overcome Partizan tonight, one could almost see them qualifying for the group stage. Friday's draw has pitted the winner of the game against FC Artmedia Bratislava, after the Slovakian side overcame Celtic FC. For both sides, it looks a winnable tie.

Improbable situation
"Our opponents are very strong, but the result of the first match leaves us with hope for an aggregate victory," said Sheriff spokesman Miroslav Primovici. "It's too early to talk about Artmedia, but it would be very interesting to take them on in the next round for a Champions League place."

Partizan test
Sheriff coach Leonid Kuchuk is promising Partizan a real test in Tiraspol, even though the Serbo-Montenegrin side totally dominated the first leg in Belgrade. "We will play different football in front of our own fans," he insisted. "In Belgrade we concentrated on defence and only conceded once.

Different story
"Partizan are a team which are strong at the moment and traditionally powerful," he added. "They were better for the whole 90 minutes but we're happy with the outcome, given that we defended most of the match. But the return in Moldova will be way different. Only half of the battle is over."

Cosmopolitan youngsters
Sheriff's hopes of reaching the third qualifying round will rest on a young, cosmopolitan side. Aside from 34-year-old defender Vazha Tarkhnishvili, who has spent the last seven seasons with the club, Sheriff boast an inexperienced selection, with players from Romania, Ukraine, Belarus, Brazil, Nigeria, Georgia and even Burkina Faso.

Favourite son
Ukrainian Under-21 international defender Oleg Gumenyuk, his Belarus counterpart Viachaslau Yaraslauski, and Moldova U21 cap Alexandru Epureanu flesh out the Sheriff defence, while the coach's son Aliaksei Kuchuk is also making good progress at the age of 19. Burkinabé youngsters Ben Idrissa Derme and Soumaila Tassembedo have also made a fine start.

More sparkle
Romanian U21 international goalkeeper Sebastian Hutan and midfielder Gheorghe Florescu add further sparkle to the team, but the pick of the bunch is 22-year-old Romanian striker Razvan Cocis. "This lad has everything it takes to be a regular for the national team for many years to come," said Romanian national coach Victor Piturca.

Zimbru motivation
However, all that young talent will need to show immense maturity if they are to overcome Partizan. But with CSF Zimbru Chisinau remaining the only Moldovan side ever to reach the third qualifying round, Sheriff will not lack motivation. Making the group stage would see Kuchuk's men set a standard no one in Moldova could dare hope to follow.