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Elfsborg and Rijeka go head-to-head in the second leg of the Europa League third qualifying round on Thursday. With last week’s reverse leg ending in a stalemate, a place in the quarter-finals remains very much up for grabs and we anticipate a thrilling contest at Borås Arena.
Elfsborg continued their push for European football in the Swedish Allsvenskan as they picked up a 2-1 victory over Elfsborg at the weekend.
This followed a 1-1 draw with Rijeka in the first leg of the Europa League third qualifying round at the Stadion HNK Rijeka last Thursday.
Elfsborg head into the weekend on a run of nine wins in their last 10 competitive home games since late April and will be backing themselves to grab the desired result.
Rijeka, on the other hand, were held to a goalless draw by Varazdin in their Croatian HNL clash at the Stadion Anđelko Herjavec last Sunday.
Radomir Dalovic’s men have now gone unbeaten in six consecutive matches, claiming two wins and four draws since a 1-0 friendly defeat against RB Salzburg on July 17.
Rijeka now turn their attention to the Europa League qualifiers, where they edged out Corvinul Hunedoara 1-0 on aggregate in the first round, before fighting back from behind to salvage a 1-1 draw in last week’s first leg against Elfsborg.
Elfsborg vs Rijeka Head-To-Head and Key Numbers
- This will be the second meeting between the two sides, with their first encounter coming in last week’s reverse leg, where they played out a 1-1 draw.
- Elfsborg are unbeaten in 10 of their last 11 matches across all competitions, claiming eight wins and two draws since late June.
- Rijeka have won just one of their last eight away games while losing four and picking up three draws since mid-April.
- Elfsborg have won all but one of their last six home games in all competitions, with a 2-1 defeat against Djurgarden on July 28 being the exception.
Elfsborg vs Rijeka Prediction
While Rijeka have put together a fine run of results in recent weeks, they have struggled to grind out results away from home. Elfsborg have been near impenetrable at Borås Arena and we are backing them to come away with the desired result, albeit by the odd goal.
Prediction: Elfsborg 2-1 Rijeka
Elfsborg vs Rijeka Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result - Elfsborg to win
Tip 2: Both sides to score - Yes (Both sides have scored in six of Elfsborg’s last eight games)
Tip 3: Over 4.5 cards - Yes (There have also been at least five bookings in four of the hosts’ five matches)
