Preview: HNK Rijeka vs Shelbourne - prediction, team news, lineups

HNK Rijeka and Shelbourne will meet on Wednesday night in the first leg of their Europa League third qualifying round tie.

The hosts were knocked out of the Champions League qualifiers by Ludogorets in the second round, while the visitors were knocked out of the Champions League second qualifying round by Qarabag.

Match preview

HNK Rijeka enjoyed a superb 2024-25 campaign, lifting their second-ever Croatian First League title and also winning the Croatian Cup.

Those triumphs earned Rijeka the chance to qualify for the Champions League, but they were eliminated after suffering a 3-1 aggregate defeat to Ludogorets in the second qualifying round.

Radomir Dalovic's side have bounced back from that loss with a 2-0 win over Slaven Belupo in their opening match of the 2025-26 Croatian First League campaign, and they will be aiming for another victory on Wednesday.

Rijeka, as a result of their UCL exit, have dropped into the third qualifying round of the Europa League, where they will meet Shelbourne in the first leg on Wednesday night.

Shelbourne qualified for the Champions League qualifying rounds after winning the League of Ireland Premier Division in 2024, and they progressed through the first round with a 2-1 aggregate win over Linfield.

The Reds were drawn against Qarabag in the second qualifying round, where a 4-0 aggregate defeat saw Shelbourne eliminated in disappointing fashion.

Shelbourne have rebounded from that loss with a 2-0 win over Sligo Rovers in the league, keeping them positioned fifth in the league, and they will be aiming to build on that win against Rijeka.

The visitors will be eager to secure a first leg lead to give them a major advantage heading into their home fixture, with Shelbourne ultimately hoping to feature in a European competition for the first time since appearing in the second round of the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2006.

HNK Rijeka form (all competitions):

Shelbourne form (all competitions):

Team News

HNK Rijeka will be without Gabrijel Rukavina and Toni Fruk for Wednesday's match after both received red cards in their 3-1 defeat to Ludogorets in the second leg of their Champions League second qualifying round.

After dramatically defeating Slaven Belupo 2-0 thanks to goals in the 93rd and 96th-minutes, goalscorers Simun Butic and Ante Matej Juric could both start here.

As for Shelbourne, Milan Bernhard Mbeng could miss out on Wednesday's fixture after the defender was taken off with an injury in their last match, meaning Sean Gannon could start.

Elsewhere, a similar team to the one that started in Shelbourne's 2-0 victory over Sligo Rovers at the weekend is expected to feature in this one.

HNK Rijeka possible starting lineup:

Zlomislic; Orec, Majstorovic, Radeljic, Devetak; Dantas; Butic, Jankovic, Juric, Gojak; Cop

Shelbourne possible starting lineup:

Speel; Gannon, Temple, Barrett, Ledwidge, Norris; Wood, Lunney, Mcinroy; Odubeko, Coote

We say: HNK Rijeka 2-1 Shelbourne

HNK Rijeka and Shelbourne will both be aiming to bounce back from being eliminated from the second qualifying round of the Champions League, leaving both hopeful of securing a victory in this first leg meeting.

While we expect that to lead to a hard-fought encounter between the two teams, HNK Rijeka boast the home advantage, leading us to expect a home win.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.