During the previous two seasons, no Montenegrin club managed to qualify for the third round of the Conference League. And while this competition was established to give teams from the lower leagues a better chance of reaching the group stage, the Meridianbet 1st CFL teams didn't even come close. And, by all accounts, they won't for a while.
And Sutjeska has the opportunity to make a breakthrough, to advance to the third round of qualifications and at least move the ranking, which today (17:XNUMX p.m.) is visiting Santa Coloma in the return leg of the second round.
Sutjeska won 2:0 in the first match, gained a nice lead before the second leg, but it was far from done. Seven days ago, the team from Andorra had serious chances, played openly, could shake the net, even to take the lead first, and it is certain that Nenad Brnović's team in the Pyrenees will not have an easy task.
- We have a good result from the first game. Now we know the opponent better, who has quality in attack. If we play like we did in Podgorica, we will qualify for the third round - believes Sutjeska right back Dragan Grivić.
Sutjeska is undefeated in five games this season. Between the two European matches, the people of Nikšić drew in the Meridianbet First Montenegrin Football League away to Mornar (1:1), but in that match Brnović played a combined line-up in order to preserve freshness before tonight's match.
- Santa Coloma showed in the first match that they are a serious team. Nothing is finished. We have a good advantage from the first match, but we still have 90 minutes to go. We have to approach the game seriously and, I hope, make it to the next round - said Nemanja Kljajević, assistant in Sutjeska's coaching staff.
Meanwhile, Nikšić are the only Montenegrin team that is still active in Europe. Arsenal ended their adventure in the Conference League a long time ago, while Budućnost was infamously eliminated from Struga two nights ago in Podgorica, in the same competition.
If it makes it to the third round, Sutjeka will have the honor and privilege of meeting the former champion of one of the leading soccer countries in Europe, AZ Alkmaar.
The first match would probably be played next Thursday, August 10 in Gorica, and the second leg seven days later in the Netherlands. Before that, Marko Matanović, Vuk Striković and friends have to do their homework in the Pyrenees.
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