Rijeka vs Derry City Prediction 23 July 2026

Rijeka earned their place in the Conference League qualifying rounds by finishing fourth in the Croatian championship. Over the summer, the club brought in a new head coach, Matjaž Kek. Pre-season went well: four friendlies, four wins, 9-1 on aggregate. Worth noting is the run in official matches - Both Teams To Score landed No in 11 of their last 12, a stretch that included five wins, three draws and four defeats.

Home form is their main strength. At their own ground, Rijeka are typically hard to break down, organized defensively, pragmatic in approach, and rarely giving opponents much to work with. They've been picking up results at home consistently, and against a side at Derry City's level, expect them to try and take control of the ball from the first whistle.

The Northern Irish side arrive here off the back of a tough European campaign. In the first qualifying round of the Europa League, they lost to Sofia's CSKA (1:2, 2:3) and dropped into the Conference League. Still, Derry made a decent account of themselves against a higher-ranked opponent.

The main thing going for the visitors is match sharpness. The Irish league is in full swing, so the squad is getting regular competitive minutes. Away form is the problem, though - in their last seven road games across all competitions, Derry lost four and drew three.