The first leg of the Europa League 2025/26 qualification playoff between Rijeka (Croatia) and PAOK (Greece) will be held on August 21 at the Rujevica Stadium. Rijeka vs. PAOK: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Rijeka
In the previous round, Radomir Djalovic's side faced Ireland's Shelbourne. After a 1-2 home defeat, Rijeka bounced back with a 3-1 away victory, scoring the decisive goal in the 90th minute. This win ended a three-match winless streak in the Europa League (1 draw, 2 losses). Furthermore, the team scored more than two goals in this European competition for the first time since 2014.
- The club has not won in regular time in 6 of their last 8 home matches in the Europa League (3 draws, 3 losses).
- The team has scored exactly 1 or 2 goals in 90 minutes in their last five home games in this European competition.
- The Croatians have not conceded more than one goal in regular time in 9 of their last 11 home matches in the Europa League.
Predicted lineup for Rijeka (4-5-1)
Martin Zlomislic – Ante Orec, Ante Majstorovic, Stjepan Radelic, Mladen Devetak – Merveil Ndockyt, Tiago Dantas, Gabriel Rukavina, Toni Fruk, Niko Jankovic – Ante Juric.
PAOK
Razvan Lucescu's side faced Austria's Wolfsberg in the previous round. Both matches ended in a goalless draw, but PAOK managed to score in extra time of the second leg to advance. Nevertheless, the Greeks extended their winless streak in regular time in the Europa League to five matches (2 draws, 3 losses). Moreover, they failed to score in four of these matches in regular time.
- The club has not won in regular time in 11 of their last 13 away matches in the Europa League (2 draws, 9 losses).
- Exactly two goals have been scored in 90 minutes in 5 of PAOK's last 7 away matches in this European competition.
- The Greeks have failed to score in regular time in 4 of their last 5 away matches in the Europa League.
Predicted lineup for PAOK (4-5-1)
Jiri Pavlenka – Abdul Rahman Baba, Tomasz Kedziora, Ioannis Michailidis, Jonjoe Kenny – Andrija Zivkovic, Magomed Ozdoev, Ioannis Konstantelias, Soualiho Meite, Luka Ivanusec – Fyodor Chalov.
Referee
Ivan Kruzliak (Slovakia)
Matches – 11 (International matches, 2024/25–2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 51;
Average yellow cards per match – 4.6;
Red cards shown – 0;
Average fouls per match – 25;
Penalties – 27%.
Match Prediction: Rijeka vs. PAOK
Even on their home turf, the Croatians rarely excel in attack: in their last eight Europa League matches, Rijeka has only once surpassed the one-goal mark, failing to score in two of those games. However, the team maintains a solid defense, conceding no more than one goal in 9 of their last 11 home matches in this European competition.
PAOK struggles in away games on the European stage: the team has suffered nine defeats in their last 13 Europa League matches. Primarily, the Greeks have been lackluster in attack, scoring at least two goals in only three of those matches. Moreover, in eight of these encounters, PAOK left the field without scoring.
I expect this to be a low-scoring match, so my prediction: Total under 2.5 goals
