Rijeka vs Real Sociedad predictions and match preview for Thursday’s game in the UEFA Europa League. Read on for the head-to-head and betting tips as La Real travel to Croatia.
- DATE: Thursday 22nd October 2020
- KICK-OFF: 18:55 (local time)
- VENUE: Stadion HNK Rijeka
- COMPETITION: UEFA Europa League (Group Stage)
Rijeka vs Real Sociedad Preview
Real Sociedad make their much anticipated return to European football on Thursday in Croatia. They take on Rijeka, bottom seeds in this Europa League group and Imanol will be targeting maximum points from the fixture with Napoli and AZ the other teams they will face.
This will be La Real’s first European venture since the 2017/18 season. They reached the last 32 of the Europa League that season, eventually going out narrowly on aggregate against RB Salzburg. With an exciting young team, hopes are high that they can reach the knockout stages again but this congested period with two blocks of three straight weeks of European action between now and the new year will test this squad to the maximum.
So far, La Real have looked really impressive this season. They are topping LaLiga with 11 points from 6 games following an excellent 3-0 win at Real Betis at the weekend. They haven’t missed Martin Odegaard anywhere near as much as might have been expected and just as significantly the absence of Diego Llorente, who left to join Leeds, has hardly been felt. La Real have conceded just two goals so far this season in LaLiga with Robin Le Normand and Aritz Elustondo stepping up to form a strong central defensive pairing.
Rijeka will be a bit of an unknown quantity. They finished 3rd in the Croatian league last season and entered the Europa League in the 3rd Qualifying Round stage. Victories over Kolos of Ukraine and Danish side FC Copenhagen have taken them this far. Like their opponents, they last appeared in the Europa League group stage in the 2017/18 season but they didn’t emerge from their group despite beating Italian giants Milan on the final matchday.
Head to Head
- The sides have never previously met.
- This will be Real Sociedad’s first ever game against Croatian opposition.
Rijeka vs Real Sociedad Predictions
Score Prediction: Rijeka 0-2 Real Sociedad
If Real Sociedad can produce a performance like they did in Seville at the weekend, they should be capable of winning this game. The absence of hostile big crowds, should make these away trips in Europe considerably easier to negotiate and La Real look capable of getting off to a winning start against what on paper is the weakest team in this group.
UEFA Europa League Betting Tips (18+)
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