3' min
The second round of the Conference League kicks off early in Kópavogur, Iceland, where Vikingur Reykjavik hosts Cercle Brugge. The Belgian side, despite struggling in their domestic league (second-last with only 9 points after 11 matches), made a sparkling start in the Conference League by thrashing an unfortunate St. Gallen 6-2 at home. Cercle Brugge currently boasts the best attack after one match, with a goal difference of +4, tied with Omonia Nicosia (who beat Vikingur Reykjavik 4-0).
The top scorer of the tournament so far is Cercle Brugge’s Togolese striker Kévin Denkey, with 3 goals, followed by his teammate, midfielder Gary Magnee, with 2 goals. Joining them are Louis Schaub (Rapid Vienna), Andronikos Kakoullis (Omonia), and Joao Correia (Pafos).
The action continues with the 18:45 kickoffs, where Manolo Jimenez's APOEL Nicosia takes on Bosnia’s FK Borac Banja Luka (both teams have 1 point, with 1 goal scored and 1 conceded). The Portuguese side Vitoria SC (who won 3-1 against Celje in their opener) travel to Sweden to face Djurgardens IF (who drew 2-2 with LASK).
After their 2-0 victory at the Franchi against the Welsh side The New Saints, Fiorentina, managed by Raffaele Palladino, head to Switzerland to face St. Gallen. The Viola, buoyed by a 6-0 thrashing of Lecce in Serie A, which followed an impressive win against AC Milan, are favored to secure a victory against a struggling St. Gallen, who had a disastrous start to their Conference League campaign and trail by 7 points in their domestic league behind leaders Zurich.
Omonia, who kept a clean sheet in their opener along with Lugano, Molde, Fiorentina, Noah, Astana, and Legia Warsaw, will face Hearts in Edinburgh. Jagiellonia Bialystok, who impressed with a win in Denmark against Copenhagen, have a seemingly easier task at home against FC Petroclub Hincesti (who lost 4-1 to Pafos in their first match).
Gent, who are looking to bounce back, face Molde at home in search of their first points. Northern Ireland’s Larne, who failed to score in their opening match along with Backa Topola, The New Saints, Betis, Mlada Boleslav, Helsinki, and Vikingur, will attempt to break their scoring drought against Ireland's Shamrock Rovers. Both Celje and Basaksehir, who lost their opening games, are seeking their first points in the competition.
Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea, who secured a 4-2 win against Gent at Stamford Bridge, head to Greece to face Panathinaikos, who are coming off a 1-1 draw with Borac. Rapid Vienna, having secured victory in their first match against Basaksehir thanks to Schaub’s double (Krzysztof Piatek’s equalizer for the Turkish side was not enough), aim for another full three points against FC Noah.
One of the surprises of the first matchday was Legia Warsaw’s victory at home against Betis. The Polish side will look to make it two in a row against Backa Topola, who narrowly lost to Astana in Kazakhstan. A balanced contest is expected in Finland, where Helsinki will face Belarusian side Dinamo Minsk. Lugano, who convincingly won their opener 3-0 against Helsinki, now travel to the Czech Republic to take on Mlada Boleslav.
Olimpija Ljubljana takes on LASK, while Pafos (who are in great form, having won 4-1 against Petroclub and currently top their domestic league) will host Germany’s Heidenheim. Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis, looking to quickly forget their loss to Legia, have a golden opportunity to bounce back against a Copenhagen side that is in good form domestically but disappointed in their Conference League opener against Jagiellonia. The action wraps up with the long journey of Kazakhstan’s Astana, who will visit The New Saints. The Welsh side has scored 29 goals in 10 domestic league matches and recently crushed Llangollen Town FC 16-0 in the FAW Welsh Cup.
