Bodo Glimt vs Nijmegen Prediction 25 August 2026
🔊 NEC are in the Champions League qualifying play-offs for the first time in their history - and they lost the first leg, going down 3-1 to Bodø/Glimt in Nijmegen. The Dutch side now need to turn things around on artificial turf above the Arctic Circle. The stakes are clear: the winner goes through to the Champions League league phase, the loser drops into the Europa League. The second leg takes place on 25 August at Aspmyra.
Head-to-Head
📊 These two sides only met for the first time last week, and it was a telling encounter. NEC dominated possession and kept Bodø/Glimt goalkeeper Nikita Haikin busy - he made five saves on the night. But the Norwegians caught the Dutch on the counter and had scored three times by the 50th minute. NEC pulled one back late on.
Head-to-head statistics Bodo Glimt - Nijmegen
Bodo/Glimt Team Overview
Last season, Bodø/Glimt competed in the Champions League league phase and reached the Round of 16 in the spring. This time they are back in qualifying, having finished second in the Norwegian league. Under Kjetil Knutsen, they currently lead the table - 41 points after 17 rounds and the best goal difference in the division.
Their biggest advantage is their home ground: Bodø/Glimt have won 14 of their last 15 matches there. It proved decisive in the previous round too - they only got past Union Saint-Gilloise in extra time, winning 6-5 on aggregate, with the decisive goal at Aspmyra coming in the 117th minute.
❗️ Remarkably, Bodø/Glimt are also due to play a Norwegian Cup match less than 24 hours later. The club have confirmed on their official website that the fixture will not be postponed. It is likely that reserves and youth players will travel to face Fauske Sprint.
Match Results: Bodo/Glimt
NEC Nijmegen Team Overview
Dick Schreuder is entering his second season in Nijmegen. In his first, he took the club into Europe - third place in the Eredivisie with 59 points. NEC came through the third qualifying round against Olympiacos with a goalless draw in Piraeus and a home win in extra time. The new league campaign has been uneven: they dropped three points to Telstar, then beat Willem II away the following week.
Away from home, NEC have been more solid than you might expect: they have gone unbeaten in 14 of their last 15 away matches. Goals have rarely been a problem either - they have scored in 32 of their last 33 games. The defence is a different story: NEC have conceded in 22 of their last 24 away matches, and that is the main concern in Bodø. The creative engine will be Dušan Tadić - the 37-year-old Serb joined in the summer and has already contributed three assists in five matches.
Match Results: NEC Nijmegen
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Bodo/Glimt
❌ The biggest loss of the summer for the Norwegians was Casper Høgh: the Dane scored 54 goals in 103 appearances for the club before moving to Scotland. Andreas Helmerssen has stepped in as his replacement and is doing the job so far - eight goals this season, including a penalty in Nijmegen. The injury list, however, was already a concern heading into the first leg: Jostein Gundersen, Håkon Evjen and August Mikkelsen are all out. No suspensions, and Bodø/Glimt came away from Nijmegen with just one booking.
NEC Nijmegen
❓ Schreuder's problem is concentrated in one area - central defence. Phillipp Sandler was already out after the Olympiacos match, Sami Ouaissa picked up an injury in the same game, and both Koki Ogawa and Yassin Moslih were unavailable for the first leg. The summer arrivals haven't helped either: Perr Schuurs joined as a free agent in June and hasn't found his fitness yet, while Ahmetcan Kaplan arrived from Ajax for €2.5 million but came in injured - the club expect him back after the September international break. PSV are also in talks over Ouaissa. The schedule at least offered some relief: the home match against Excelsior was postponed, giving NEC six free days after the Nijmegen game.
Predicted Lineups
📋 Predicted starting XI - Bodø/Glimt: Haikin - Sjøvold, Bjørtoft, Aleesami, Bjørkan - Uklein, Berg, Fet - Blomberg, Helmersen, Høgh.
📋 Predicted starting XI - NEC: Kréttas - Pereira, Storm, Fonville - Mohr, Nejašmić, Lebreton, Bischoff - Chery, Tadić - Linssen.
⚽️ Goals Prediction
The visitors need a big win, so they won't be sitting back. At home, Bodø/Glimt and their opponents have combined for more than two goals in 15 of the last 17 matches. In the Champions League the run is even more consistent - 11 straight matches. NEC show a similar pattern, with over 2.5 goals in 6 of their last 7 games. Expecting at least three goals here. Bet: Total Goals - Over 2.5 at odds of 1.37*.
🚩 Corners Prediction
Both sides are heavy corner teams. Over their last ten official matches, Bodø/Glimt have averaged 6.8 corners per game and NEC 7.2, with opponents averaging just over three in each case - adding up to around ten per match for both. The hosts will have the ball, but NEC will need to push forward too. Bet: Total Corners - Over 9.5.
🟨 Yellow Cards Prediction
Michael Oliver is the referee in Bodø - last Premier League season the Englishman showed 91 yellow cards across 29 matches. He'll have plenty of reasons to reach for his pocket: Bodø/Glimt themselves rarely foul, but their opponents pick up 2.4 cards per game. NEC are more balanced - 1.7 cards for them and 2.1 for their opponents. Combined across both teams, that adds up to more than three. Bet: Total Yellow Cards - Over 2.5.
*Odds are indicative and may vary across bookmakers.
⭐️ Editor's Pick
A two-goal defeat is enough for the hosts to go through in normal time, and that changes their approach: there's no need to take risks, and no need to chase a big scoreline either. The numbers point the same way - Bodø/Glimt have failed to score more than three goals in 16 consecutive Champions League matches. That said, we're not questioning a home win: the Norwegians have lost just once in their last 10 matches in the competition.
NEC's logic rests on something different: they haven't lost by more than one goal away from home in 25 consecutive matches. The foundation of that is straightforward - they score in the second half in 13 of their last 15 away games. The one crack in this reasoning is that Schreuder's central defence is in disarray, and the visitors may not be able to replicate what they managed in Nijmegen. But they'll have to push forward regardless, and at that point the hosts will be better off sitting back than pressing for more. The bet is NEC with a +1.5 handicap. Predicted score: 2-1.
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Betting Tips: Bodo/Glimt - NEC Nijmegen
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