Shamrock Rovers in a pre-match huddle will be out in action on Thursday
Photos by George Kelly
Rovers travel to Iceland for European encounter
SHAMROCK Rovers are set to return to European action on Thursday as they take on Breidablik in Iceland this evening.
The match represents the fifth round of fixtures in a conference league campaign that has seen Rovers fail to get a win as of yet leaving them second from bottom in the league table.
Still their performances have been impressive throughout, a draw away from home against AEK Athens as well as close games against SK Celje and Shakhtar Donetsk in Tallaght, Rovers dreams for play offs are still alive providing they can win their final two games of the group phase.
Their opponents Breidablik find themselves in a similar position. They sit just above Rovers in 33rd position on two points. The club have drawn their two home matches, one against Turkish Super League side Samsunspor and the other against Finnish team KuPS.
Breidablik have a number of Icelandic internationals within their ranks including captain Hoskuldur Gunnlaugsson, Anton Ari Einarsson and Kristinn Steindórsson to name just a few.
The two sides have actually met in recent years with the pair playing two games back in 2023 in the first qualifying round of the Champions League with Breidablik coming out on top on both legs with a 1-0 and 2-1 win respectively.
Both sides know that seven points will be the minimum amount needed to possibly qualify for the playoff phase so both will be attacking their next two games vigorously.
The financial element of Rovers performing well in this game should not be overlooked with the winner of the match set to earn €400,000 with a win while a draw would earn €133,000.
Should either club reach a playoff they will have earned a minimum of €200,000 on top of the €3 million already earned through qualifying for the group phase of the tournament. Should either club win that playoff they will receive another €800,000 bringing total earnings to over €4 million offering real financial incentives for qualification and progression.
