Djurgarden – Lech Poznan

The Swedes will not be able to beat their opponents in the return meeting

The first game of the Swedish-Polish duel took place in Poznań last week, with the home side having the expected advantage. Lech had twice as much possession, far more corner kicks (6-1), and failed to allow a single shot on goal for Bednarek (4-0). As a consequence, these statistics led to the Poles' victory in the main indicator - the scoreline. At the end of the first half, Milicz scored the opening goal for Lech, before Marhwinski's goal in the 82nd minute made it 2-0. The advantage for the Poles over the club from the Swedish capital looks impressive on the eve of the return leg, and the only remaining question is whether Djurgården will be able to return to the pitch with any intrigue on Thursday. The bookmakers, with a slight slant in the odds, regarded the home side as favourites for the meeting, but they are not considered by analysts to be Lech's rivals for the quarter-finals. Djurgården finished the season in the national championship last year and only played official matches in the Swedish Cup in 2023. The lack of decent playing practice was one of the reasons for their defeat in Poznań a week ago. The Stockholm club have not lost a match in the group stage of the Conference League in the company of Gent, Molde and Shamrock Rovers. Before the return leg against the Poles, Djurgården beat Malmö in a penalty shoot-out of the Swedish Cup quarter-final. If Christiansen had saved in the middle of the first half when Malmö were already 1-0 up, the game might have turned out differently. The two-goal deficit could have been overtaken by Djurgården. Lech, unlike their opponents, started playing their domestic league games at the end of January and also progressed through to the 1/16th round of the Conference League, which saw them finish above Budo/Glimt. As in the first meeting with the Swedes, the Poznań club did not concede a single goal to the Norwegians, who were strong in attack. On Sunday, Lech played the Ekstraklasa game against Piast Gliwice, which ended in a draw thanks to a 90+3 minute goal. The Polish club inspires much more confidence than their nearest rival. Lech will once again show their second-half skills on Thursday and, at the very least, will not lose on Swedish soil.