HNK Rijeka vs Ilves — UEFA Europa Conference League: stats, lineups & analysis
HighlightsHNK RijekaYouTubeMatch Events
play_arrow1 clip- 11′HNK Rijeka, yellow card:
- 16′HNK Rijeka, goal:1–0assist
- 27′Ilves, yellow card:
- Half-time1 – 0
- 46′HNK Rijeka, substitution:off
- 50′HNK Rijeka, yellow card:
- 59′Ilves, substitution:off
- 59′Ilves, substitution:off
- 71′HNK Rijeka, substitution:off
- 71′HNK Rijeka, substitution:off
- 72′Ilves, substitution:off
- 72′Ilves, substitution:off
- 75′Ilves, yellow card:
- 83′Ilves, substitution:off
- 84′HNK Rijeka, substitution:off
- 90′HNK Rijeka, substitution:off
- 90+2′Ilves, yellow card:
- Full-time1 – 0
Lineups
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Key Stats
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Goal
Assist
Videos
Match report
Rijeka edge out Ilves in Conference League qualifier
HNK Rijeka defeated Ilves 1-0 at Stadion HNK Rijeka in the UEFA Europa Conference League third qualifying round, with the only goal settling a qualifier that Rijeka dominated for long spells. The result gave Matjaz Kek's side control of the tie heading into any subsequent leg.
AI-assisted match report written from official match data.
The decisive moment arrived in the 16th minute, when Niko Janković converted an assist from Tiago Dantas to put Rijeka ahead. The hosts led 1-0 at half-time and never surrendered that advantage, with Ilves, managed by Joni Lehtonen, unable to force an equaliser despite the match remaining goalless for the remaining hour.
Rijeka's dominance was reflected across the statistics, as the hosts commanded 66% of possession and struck 14 shots on target compared to just one for Ilves. The visitors were also second-best at corners, winning only one to Rijeka's nine, though referee Ishmael Barbara did book three of their players against two for the home side.
Janković provided the match's decisive contribution, converting the 16th-minute chance created by Dantas to hand Rijeka the lead they would not relinquish.
Rijeka's 14 shots on target to Ilves' solitary effort underlined the gulf in attacking threat between the two sides.
HNK Rijeka beat Ilves 1–0 (half-time 1–0).
HNK Rijeka met Ilves in the UEFA Europa Conference League (3rd Qualifying Round). Kick-off was Thursday, 6 August 2026, 18:45 UTC at Stadion HNK Rijeka. Referee: Ishmael Barbara.
Team pages: HNK Rijeka · Ilves · UEFA Europa Conference League
Key moments
- 16' Goal: Niko Janković (assist: Tiago Dantas) — 1–0 · Watch Niko Janković's goal video (16')
Starting line-ups
HNK Rijeka (4-2-3-1)
Ilves (4-3-3)
Sirius · Why these numbers
Before kick-off Sirius gave HNK Rijeka 74%, the draw 17%, Ilves 9%. It finished HNK Rijeka 1–0 Ilves.
HNK Rijeka's rating gap decides it — HNK Rijeka are clearly the stronger side on our strength rating, and that is most of HNK Rijeka's 74%. The draw at 17% is about what a gap this size usually leaves.
Why HNK Rijeka at 74%?
HNK Rijeka sit 341 points higher on our strength rating — 1620 to 1279. Sides with a more than 300-point rating edge at home won 79.8% of 5,046 such games. The 300 most similar past games finished 73–18–9.
Why not higher?
No scored evidence points the other way. 74% is what this rating gap has been worth in games like these; the rest is the draw at 17% and Ilves at 9%.
Why is the draw only 17%?
With a rating gap this size the draw starts at 16.4%. These teams' recent games average 2.4 goals — a typical goals environment. Games in that environment drew 26.2% of 27,490.
What did we measure but not count?
Ilves have 15 fully-tracked matches with us — under our usual 25-game bar — but their strength rating is anchored to the long-run European club ratings list, which carries their wider competitive history into the number. Clubs from leagues we don't fully cover play too few tracked games for a record built from scratch, so their rating chain starts from published long-run club ratings instead of a blind first guess.
Sirius probabilities, frozen at kick-off. Analysis, not betting advice. How Sirius is doing this season · Full breakdown, evidence cards and squad news in the Match Insights tab
About this match
On this page: the HNK Rijeka vs Ilves final score and result, goal highlights and video clips of every goal, who scored, starting lineups, match stats and the full match report from this UEFA Europa Conference League fixture.
- Who scored and when — a goal-by-goal timeline of the match.
- Match stats — possession, shots, expected goals (xG), corners and cards.
- Starting lineups and player ratings for both teams.
- Head-to-head record and recent form for both sides.
Watch the goals: goal highlights and video clips of every goal from HNK Rijeka 1–0 Ilves. Explore more on the HNK Rijeka and Ilves team pages or the UEFA Europa Conference League page.