Preview: Hapoel Be'er Sheva vs Red Star Belgrade - prediction, team news, lineups

As the battle for Champions League football heats up, Israel's Hapoel Be'er Sheva will welcome Serbia's Red Star Belgrade to Haladas Sportkomplexum on Tuesday, for the first leg of their third qualifying round tie.

The Camels are hoping to build on their win last time out, while the Red-Whites are looking to continue their excellent opening to the season.

Match preview

Ran Kozuch's HBS are the reigning Israeli champions, but it would be fair to say that they have been far from their best so far in 2026-27.

The Camels beat Iceland's Vikingur Reykjavik 2-0 last Wednesday, overcoming a 2-1 deficit from the first leg to reach the Champions League's third qualifying round.

That victory was the club's first win in five games, and given it was preceded by a three-match losing streak, it remains to be seen whether the triumph was a one-off success.

To make matters worse, Kozuch's men have not progressed beyond the third qualifying round in any UEFA competition since 2022-23, when they reached the group stage of the Conference League.

However, the more positive amongst the HBS faithful will take heart from the fact that the Israeli side had previously been excellent when playing as the home team, losing just three matches since August 2025 when named as hosts.

Meanwhile, Dejan Stankovic's Red Star are the Serbian champions, but come into this showdown in excellent form - a stark contrast to their opponents.

The Red-Whites reached this stage by thrashing Northern Ireland's Larne 5-0 on Wednesday, sealing a 9-0 aggregate demolition in the second qualifying round.

That triumph has been part of a flawless start to the 2026-27 campaign, which has seen Stankovic's side rack up four wins on the bounce across all competitions so far.

Fans will be expecting to see Red Star continue that trend on Tuesday, given that the club have reached the group stage or league phase of UEFA competition in each of the last nine seasons, and will be hoping to make it an uninterrupted decade this term.

The Red-Whites are the favourites in this tie, and their confidence will be bolstered by their immense away record - the visitors have not lost a competitive away match since November 2025.

Hapoel Be'er Sheva Champions League form:

Hapoel Be'er Sheva form (all competitions):

Red Star Belgrade Champions League form:

Red Star Belgrade form (all competitions):

Team News

HBS will be without centre-back Djibril Diop on Tuesday, as he works his to full fitness following a thigh issue, while left-back Pedro Amador - who was signed from Atlanta United in the last week - is recovering from an Achilles injury.

In their absence, expect to see Itay Rotman join Miguel Vitor at centre-half, flanked by full-backs Guy Mizrahi and Matan Baltaxa.

At the opposite end of the pitch, winger Dan Biton remains sidelined due to heart issues that surfaced in the spring, and striker Joao Victor is dealing with a hamstring injury.

With that in mind, Igor Zlatanovic looks set to lead the line in midweek, supported from out wide by Javon East, and Zahi Ahmed.

As for Red Star, they have a generally fit squad outside of 18-year-old left-back Adem Avdic, who suffered a cruciate ligament tear in June.

Matej Strika should be on hand to start on the left of Stankovic's defence, alongside Milos Veljkovic, Franklin Uchenna and Seol Young-woo.

Hapoel Be'er Sheva possible starting lineup:

Marciano; Mizrahi, Rotman, Vitor, Baltaxa; Yehoshua, Ventura, Kangwa; East, Zlatanovic, Ahmed

Red Star Belgrade possible starting lineup:

Matheus; Seol, Uchenna, Veljkovic, Strika; Loizou, Abu Fani, Krunic; Katai, Cham; Arnautovic

We say: Hapoel Be'er Sheva 0-3 Red Star Belgrade

HBS may have won their second round tie to make this stage, but they had to come from behind and had lost each of the three matches prior.

By contrast, Red Star are in immense form having made a flawless start to the 2026-27 season, and will be expecting to continue in a similar fashion after their dominant 9-0 triumph in the second round.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.