On Wednesday, July 29, Zhytomyr’s Polesye will travel to Copenhagen for the second leg of the second qualifying round playoff in the Conference League. A defeat in this match will be fatal for the Ukrainian club, ending its European campaign. For Copenhagen, a loss also means elimination from the race for the group stage.
Where and when to watch the match
The match between Copenhagen and Polesye will kick off at 20:00 Kyiv time. The game will take place at Parken Stadium in the Danish capital. In Ukraine, the broadcast will be available on the OTT platform MEGOGO. Access to the match is granted to subscribers of the "Sport" package or owners of the "MEGOPACK" subscription. The broadcast will be available on one of the "MEGOGO Football" channels and in the "Football" section under the "Sport" category.
Referee team
The main referee for the match is Czech Marek Radina. His assistants will be Kamil Hajek and Petr Kotalik. The reserve referee will be Daniel Vokoun. Notably, the VAR system will not be used in this match.
Team preparation
For Polesye, this match will be the first official game since the start of the season. The Ukrainian Championship starts only this weekend, so Ruslan Rotan's team has not played any official matches or friendly games. Meanwhile, Copenhagen has already played in the Danish Championship, defeating new league entrant Lyngby with a score of 3:2. A semi-reserve lineup took the field, managing to secure a victory but facing problems during the game.
Personalities and transfers
Between matches, Polesye signed contracts with three African juniors: 18-year-old Dandjume Daling Junior and Muhammad Abdulhakim Abdulkadir from Nigeria, as well as Ajee Raymond from Ghana. They are expected to strengthen the team's reserve in defense, attack, and midfield respectively. However, these players are unlikely to take the field in Denmark.
Between games, Copenhagen lost one of its leaders — forward Elias Ashuri, who moved to the USA and will play for San Diego. Since Ashuri missed the first game against Polesye, it can be expected that the same starting lineups that played six days ago will take the field at Parken Stadium.
What to expect from the match
A defeat in this match will mean the end of the European campaign for either team. The winner will face the opponent from the Debrecen (Hungary) — Pyunik (Armenia) pair. After the first match, the Hungarians are closer to victory, having won with a score of 1:0.
The course of the first game against Polesye and Copenhagen's results in the Danish Championship offer hope for a positive result for Ukrainian fans. However, the upcoming match will be decisive, and every mistake could cost the team a place in the Conference League group stage.
