Dinamo Zagreb vs NEC Nijmegen: Can Nijmegen Survive in the Europa League After a 5-0 Opening Hammering?
SportSignals Match Desk · Football analysis desk ·
Thursday 22 October 2026. Dinamo Zagreb host NEC Nijmegen in the UEFA Europa League. Kick-off is at 17:45 UK time. Let me tell you what I see here, because it is not complicated.
The State of NEC Nijmegen
Nijmegen's only Europa League match in the data we have ended 0-5 against Juventus. That scoreline is not just a bad result. That is a statement about a team that was not ready to compete at this level. Zero goals scored. Five conceded. The basics were not there.
The thing is, you can lose to Juventus. Everyone loses to Juventus. But losing 5-0 tells me something about the attitude and the desire to stay in the match when things go against you. Did they compete for the full 90 minutes? That scoreline suggests not.
On top of that, Nijmegen arrive in Zagreb with a significant absentee list. They have one player suspended until January 2027. They have four separate injury concerns, ranging from moderate to unspecified severity, all beginning between early September and October. That is a depleted group. There is no hiding from it. When your squad is cut down like that, you need every available player to be absolutely right in terms of standards and commitment. Anything less is unacceptable.
Where Dinamo Zagreb Stand
Dinamo's only completed Europa League match in this window ended in a 0-0 draw with Hapoel Be'er Sheva. A clean sheet is a clean sheet. I will take that. It tells me their defence is organised and hard to break down. They did not score, which is a concern, but at home in front of their own supporters, Dinamo will be expected to carry a different kind of threat.
Listen, a 0-0 away draw in European competition is not a catastrophe. It shows defensive accountability. The question is whether they can add the attacking quality to go with it on their own ground.
The Verdict
This match sets up clearly. Dinamo are at home. They kept a clean sheet in their only Europa League match. NEC Nijmegen were hammered 5-0, are missing multiple players through suspension and injury, and are travelling to a club that knows how to make the Maksimir Stadium a hostile place to visit.
The thing is, Nijmegen have not shown me anything in the evidence available that suggests they can compete over 90 minutes against a team that is organised, at home, and with something to prove. Their squad is threadbare. Their only result in this competition was an embarrassment.
I am backing Dinamo Zagreb to win and keep a clean sheet. Their defensive record is there in black and white. Nijmegen's attack has produced nothing in their only Europa League appearance. You do not need a laptop to work that out. End of.
The Bet
Dinamo Zagreb win and clean sheet. One selection. Back it with conviction.