Football: Djurgården ready for Europa Conference League – early goal against Maribor was decisive

Djurgården is ready for the group stage in the Conference League for the second time.

Just like in the home match last week, it was a 1-0 victory against Slovenian Maribor.

Maribor pressed hard

The goal came after three minutes. Gustav Wikheim received a throw-in on the right wing, got past the Maribor defense and played diagonally back to Deniz Hümmet who easily put the ball into the goal.

– I make a diverting run and get my back on the completely wrong side, so it was just a matter of bumping it in, he says after the match to Aftonbladet.

After the early goal, a fairly long period of heavy Maribor pressure awaited, but they never managed to outwit Jacob Rinne in the Dif goal.

Vidmar was expelled

A quarter of an hour into the second half, the Slovenian uphill became really steep. Then Lan Vidmar was sent off shortly after a tackle on Marcus Danielson in Djurgården.

– We knew there was a lot left to do after their red card, but it was very stable. You know that a lot can happen, but you mustn’t relax too much, says Djurgården’s goalkeeper Jacob Rinne.

Maribor made some attempts to press later in the half, but never really came close. Instead, it was actually Djurgården that came closest to scoring.

– Very strong effort from Djurgården, who generally have good control at Maribor. Smart away game with 1-0 behind. They act very seasoned and you can see that there is a habit of playing in Europe – impressive from Dif, says SVT Sports expert Daniel Nannskog.

In the playoffs in 2023

Thus, Djurgården will once again make an appearance in the third highest European competition. The first time, in the 2022-23 season, they won their group ahead of Belgian Gent. Then there was a loss in the round of 16 against Polish Lech Poznan.

– You play to do this kind of thing, so it feels fantastic, says Jacob Rinne.

The draw for the league phase takes place tomorrow, Friday.