It’s astonishing; Qarabağ, a team from Azerbaijan, is shining in the Champions League alongside Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid.
We can’t believe it: the greatest surprise of the European season.
According to “Varzesh 3,” Qarabağ, with victories in its first two matches, has had a flawless start in European competitions and is marching step by step with the continent’s biggest clubs. They say: “We can’t believe we are here.”
Looking for an outsider? It shouldn’t take long. Just look at the Champions League group stage table and check the teams that have won two games out of two.
At the top of the table you see PSG, who shone again in Barcelona on Wednesday night, last season’s runner-up Inter Milan, Real Madrid with Kylian Mbappé, European giants like Bayern Munich and Arsenal, and… Qarabağ. Yes, you read it right: the reigning champion of Azerbaijan.
Two weeks ago, Qarabağ recorded its first-ever Champions League group stage win with a 3–2 away victory over Benfica, and this Wednesday they defeated Copenhagen 2–0. Eight years after their only previous appearance at this level — which ended without a single win — they are now, temporarily, at the very top of European football.
Qurban Qurbanov, the team’s head coach, said: “Maybe I didn’t expect six points, but I believed in it. I always had trust. I congratulate my players and our fans. Today it felt like they were all together on the pitch. Being in this position is amazing.” His Danish counterpart, Jacob Neestrup, added: “We knew Qarabağ was a strong team, and we saw it today.”
Facing Death and Bullets
Dominant in their domestic league, Qarabağ has plenty of experience in Europe’s lesser-known competitions. Their performances have varied: from finishing last (36th) in last season’s Europa League group stage, to reaching the Europa League round of 16 the year before against Bayer Leverkusen, the eventual finalists.
But this season, Qarabağ has started with a storm: strengthened by a historic victory in Portugal against Benfica — a team that reached the quarterfinals last season — after coming back from a 2–0 deficit.
Abdullah Zoubir, the French player who scored against Copenhagen, told So Foot after the win: “It was a historic moment for the club. The welcome at the airport was unbelievable — after seven hours of flying we were exhausted, but seeing the fans waiting for us lifted us up. It was important for us, but for them it was on another level. That’s when we realized what a huge achievement we had made.”
This success resonates far beyond football in Azerbaijan. Since the mid-1990s, following the First Karabakh War and defeat against Armenia, the club has been based in Baku. Qurbanov said on Wednesday night: “I have always asked my players to fight like soldiers. I’ve always told them they are facing death and bullets. We fight for 90 minutes on the pitch, and then we rest.”
Do They Have a Chance to Advance?
Since 2008, Qurbanov has led a multicultural squad, with interpreters present in the locker room to translate instructions. Against Copenhagen, there were Zoubir (France), Mateus Silva (Brazil), Kevin Medina (Colombia), Oleksiy Kashchuk (Ukraine), Emmanuel Adjei (Ghana), and Leandro Andrade (Cape Verde).
So, the question is: does this team have a real chance of progressing from the group stage? There are two ways: either finish among the top eight and qualify directly for the round of 16, or be in the top 24 and play in the playoffs in February. With six points, Qarabağ is on the right track — but last season, Dinamo Zagreb was eliminated with 11 points. Qarabağ faces a tough schedule ahead: away trips to Bilbao, Naples, and Liverpool, and home games against Chelsea, Ajax, and Frankfurt.
Mateus Silva warns: “These victories should not make us arrogant. We must continue our work.” Qurbanov adds: “Maybe eight or nine points will be enough, but some things are beyond our control. Our rivals now take us more seriously. If after Benfica we were taken 70–80% seriously, now it’s 100%. We must work harder and be braver.”
So that they can remain a miraculous exception at the top of the table.
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