August 12, 2021 - In the UEFA Europa Conference League 3rd qualifying round, Rijeka tops Hibernian to move to the playoffs, while Osijek and CSKA draw to knock the Croatian club out of the competition. 

Rijeka beat Hibernian 4:1 in the Conference League's 3rd qualifying round and advanced to the playoffs. The first match between Rijeka and Hibernian in Edinburgh ended 1:1. 

Pavičić crowned Rijeka's better game in the first half with a goal in the 36th minute. Hibernian opened the second half with a goal in the 56th minute to shock the home team. After a Hibernian exclusion forced them to play with a man down from the 66th minute, Rijeka returned thanks to a goal by Abass in the 68th minute, and McGinn pushed Rijeka into the next round with an own goal in the 73rd minute. Bušnja confirmed Rijeka's playoff spot with a goal in the 90th minute. 

Goals: Pavičić 36', Abass 68', McGinn-og 73' Bušnja 90'/ Magennis 56'

In the fourth qualifying round, Rijeka will play against the Greek club PAOK Thessaloniki for a spot in the group stage. PAOK defeated Irish club Bohemian 2:0 on Thursday and thus made up for the goal behind (1:2) from the first match played in Dublin. 

The first playoff game will be played in Thessaloniki on August 19, and the return match in Rujevica is scheduled for August 26.

Osijek had a tougher job on Thursday night at City Garden Stadium and needed to come back from a two-goal deficit in the first match where CSKA won 4:2 in Sofia. 

Slobodan Kadic

CSKA took the lead in the 33rd minute with a goal by Carey, and Osijek equalized through Škorić in the 45th minute. However, the match ended 1:1, which was not enough for Osijek to continue its run in the Europa Conference League.

CSKA will play in the playoffs against the winner of Viktoria Plzen and Welsh TNS.

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August 6, 2021 - In the Europa Conference League 3rd qualifying round, Osijek falls to CSKA Sofia, while Rijeka and Hibernian draw in Edinburgh. 

In the first game of the Conference League 3rd qualifying round, Osijek suffered a 2:4 (1:3) away defeat to CSKA in Sofia.

The scorers for CSKA were Mazikou (30), Carey (39), Caicedo (42), and Yomov (74), while Turicov (41-own goal) and Topčagić (90 + 3) scored for Osijek. 

CSKA was better from the beginning of the game. Striker Mazikou accepted the ball 30 meters from Osijek's goal, made his way into the penalty area, and overcame Ivušić from 10 meters for the lead. 

CSKA increased their lead to 2:0 in the 39th minute. Turicov got the ball on the right wing and crossed to Carey who sent the ball into the net with his head.

Osijek briefly returned to the game only two minutes later. Fiolić took the corner which forced Turicov to beat his own goalkeeper with an own goal header for 2:1. 

However, 2:1 lasted just over a minute. CSKA broke through the left side of Osijek's defense, this time Jomov fought for the space and crossed to Caicedo who scored for 3:1. 

In the second half, CSKA took the lead at 4:1, primarily thanks to the fast-footed Caicedo who rushed up the left side to find Yomov, who had no difficulty clearing the empty net.

Topčagić gave Osijek some hope with a goal for the final 4:2 in the third minute of added time. The return match is in Osijek in one week.

Rijeka played 1:1 (0:0) in the first match of the Conference League 3rd qualifying round away to Hibernian in Edinburgh.

Ampem (61) put Rijeka in the lead and Boyle (67) equalized for Hibernian. 

Rijeka took the lead in the 61st minute when the ball circled around the home penalty area before Vukčević found Ampem, who managed to head past Macey at the door for the Rijeka lead. 

Unfortunately, only six minutes later, Hibernian equalized after a corner kick eventually found Boyle who scored for 1:1.  The hosts had a great opportunity in added time, but the Rijeka goalkeeper stopped Mackay's shot to keep the score even. 

The return match will be played in Rijeka in one week.

Source: HRT

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