Vitoria Guimaraes will take on Hajduk Split during the second leg in the UEFA Conference League semifinals. The match will take place at Estadio D. Afonso Henriques in Guimaraes on Wednesday, August 10.
VItoria Guimaraes is not one of the most prominent players in Portuguese football. They are clearly stronger than the three top-recognized favorites, as well as the fourth Braga. The conquerors finished in five to six positions, and five years ago the Cup (and the Super Cup) were won. They then went on to win international tournaments. The group stage of the Europa League was played by the Portuguese in 2013, 2017, and 2018. Another 6th place was achieved in the Primeira season. They will now make their debut in Conference League. Vitoria surpassed the first barrier, as expected. Puskas Akademia was the rival and they lost 3-0 in their first home match. Guimaraes managed to draw a goalless match in Hungary on the road. The next game was in Split where the Croats won a convincing victory, 3-1. To at least send the dispute into overtime, the hosts must win by two goals.
Hajduk Split These were highly rated in Yugoslavia’s days. He was crowned champion of Croatia several times. Now Dynamo Zagreb is the dominant player in Croatia. The last “gold” award for “masters of the sea” was awarded back to 2005. In the current scenario, last season was successful. Wards of Valdas Dambrauskas took 2nd place. They won the cup to further cement their success. This is the 16th trophy of its kind in history. It was not possible to win this cup in 2013, however. The new season started with a loss. Hajduk was defeated by Dinamo (Zagreb), his historical rival. The Super Cup match ended without goals in extra and regular time. The champion won the penalty shootout. The European Cup cycle began last week. The Portuguese were at home so neither the host nor the opponent could score for an hour. Curiously, it helped that the goal was conceded in the 61st minutes. It was answered three times in less than 30 minutes!
Although the teams aren’t bad, they don’t have European Cup regular status. Vitoria (Guimaraes), and Hajduk, (Split), have never played together before the current confrontation. Bookmakers believe Vitoria has the ability to win, but this could not be enough for overall success. Croats will expect to score less than 2.5 goals.
Prediction: The match will be scored under 2.5 goals.
