CSKA Sofia vs Derry City Preview
CSKA Sofia are in strong pre-season form and the Bulgarian side get amongst the goals. Derry City haven’t won away since April and a home victory with goals is likely in the Europa League Qualifier.
Consecutive Wins for CSKA Sofia
- CSKA Sofia have won their last 2 matches.
- CSKA Sofia have seen over 2.5 goals in their last 4 games.
- Derry City have seen over 2.5 goals in 3 of their last 4 away matches.
H2H - Sofia Unbeaten
CSKA Sofia have a 1-0 advantage against Derry City, alongside one draw in two meetings.
CSKA Sofia Are in Strong Form
Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia are tough-to-beat and are undefeated in eight of their previous 11 matches.
The Reds returned for pre-season in late June and came back from a goal down to beat Grosuplje 2-1. They followed that result with a 4-0 loss to Polissya Zhytomyr and a 3-2 victory against Odra Opole.
Hristo Yanev’s side secured a second consecutive win and comfortably beat Marek 3-0 on Friday. Stefano Sensi scored in the fifth minute and Petko Panayotov and Ioannis Pittas found the net after half time.
Derry City Lack an Away Threat
Derry City are in poor long-term form and have won just two of their last 12 games. The Candystripes were winless in seven and lost two away games in that run.
The Northern Irish side ended their winless streak with a 4-1 home win over Bohemians before a 2-1 loss at Galway. Derry then drew 1-1 at Shamrock Rovers and beat Drogheda 2-0.
Tiernan Lynch's side lost 4-2 against Waterford last time out. Derry allowed 3.3 XG and late goals from Rob Slevin and Adam O'Reilly couldn't prevent the defeat.
Predicted Starting Lineups & Team News
CSKA Sofia (4-3-3): Fedor Lapoukhov; Pastor, Lumbardh Dellova, Teodor Ivanov, Angelo Martino; Bruno Jordao, Max Ebong, James Eto'o; Alejandro Piedrahita, Ioannis Pittas, Leandro Godoy
Attacker Leandro Godoy is likely to start against Derry City. The forward scored 15 goals and made three assists in the 2025/26 campaign.
Derry City (4-2-3-1): Eddie Beach; Barry Cotter, Conor Barr, Patrick McClean, Brandon Fleming; Cameron Dummigan, Adam O'Reilly, Kevin Santos, Michael Duffy, James McClean; Liam Boyce
Derry City have no injuries or suspensions.