Utrecht vs Zrinjski Prediction and Betting Tips

Utrecht will host Zrinjski at the Station Galgenwaard on Thursday in the second leg of their 2025-26 UEFA Europa League play-off round qualifying clash. The hosts have a comfortable cushion going into the second leg and will be confident to book their spot in the main stages of the competition this midweek.

Utrecht came out on top with a 2-0 win over Zrinjski in the first leg in what was a closely matched contest and now have a foot in the league phase of the Europa League. The Dutch side, who last featured in the main stages of an European competition in the 2010-11 season, picked up wins in both legs against Moldovan side Sheriff Tiraspol and Swiss outfit Servette in earlier rounds and will fancy their chances of completing the qualification journey on Thursday.

Zrinjski began their qualification campaign in the running for Champions League football, defeating SS Virtus in the opening round before losing 6-2 on aggregate to Slovan Bratislava in the second round. The Bosnian side have since defeated Breiðablik in the third round of Europa League qualification and will remain optimistic to get a maiden appearance in the main stages of the tournament despite last week's loss.

Utrecht vs Zrinjski Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

The sides have met on three previous occasions going into Thursday's game. Both sides have won one each with the remaining one ending in a draw.
Utrecht have won each of their five Europa League qualifiers games so far, scoring a remarkable 14 goals and conceding only four across those games.
Zrinjski have won only one of their last seven games across all competitions.
The visitors first and only appearance in the main stages of an European competition came in the 2023-24 Conference League season.

Utrecht vs Zrinjski Prediction

Utrecht are strong favorites and should get a comfortable win against a side that has considerably less quality. The hosts will also receive a considerable boost from their home advantage and much better offensive form.

Plemići will need to be at their best to get a win on Thursday and will need something even more special to overturn a two goal deficit from the first leg.

Prediction: Utrecht 2-1 Zrinjski

Utrecht vs Zrinjski Betting Tips

Tip 1 - Result: Utrecht

Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Nine of the hosts' last 10 games have featured more than 2.5 goals)

Tip 3 - Both teams to score: Yes (Both teams have gotten on the scoresheet in eight of the hosts' last 10 games)

About the author

Jedidiah is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda, who has been covering match previews for more than 3 years. Currently pursuing an engineering degree from the University of Ibadan, he conducts thorough research and ensures to be up-to-date with football news across the globe to create the most accurate previews.

A Manchester United fan, Jedidiah fell in love with football and the Red Devils since their UEFA Champions League triumph over Chelsea in 2008. He is a big fan of Robert Lewandowski and his historic performances from 2020, but feels that only Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are capable of replicating the Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry. His all-time favorite manager is Carlo Ancelotti due to the Italian's remarkable composure in difficult moments of a contest. Spain's 1-0 win over Netherlands in the final of the 2010 FIFA World Cup is etched in his memory forever.

A true student of the game, Jedidiah relishes identifying hidden gems from lower-tiered leagues such as the EFL Championship and the Eredivisie. When not creating previews, he likes playing football and reading books.

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