CSKA Sofia vs Monaco: Top Scorer Brunner Banned

CSKA SofiaCSK

UEFA Europa Conference League

Today · 16:45

National Stadium Vasil Levski

Sofia

Mostly Cloudy · 11°C

MonacoMON

AI Forecasts

CSKA Sofia open their league stage campaign at home against a Monaco side with a vastly more valuable starting XI and a recent run of six wins in ten. The hosts have struggled to find goals lately, failing to score in half of their last eight, and their chance creation has been…

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CSKA Sofia vs Monaco: Top Scorer Brunner Banned

Published Wed 14 Oct

CSKA Sofia host Monaco in UEFA Europa Conference League Matchweek 1 on Thursday 15 October 2026 at National Stadium Vasil Levski in Sofia, with the home side attempting to halt a run of three consecutive defeats.

CSKA Sofia carry three straight losses into Europe

The Bulgarian side entered the league stage after a difficult European qualification run. CSKA Sofia lost both legs of their playoff round against OFI, falling 3-0 away on 20 August 2026 and 2-0 at home on 27 August 2026. Prior to those defeats, they also suffered a 3-1 home loss against Maccabi Tel Aviv on 13 August 2026, though a 3-0 away victory on 6 August 2026 in that tie and a 0-0 home draw with Qarabag on 30 July 2026 kept their European campaign alive.

Across their last three matches with chance data recorded, CSKA Sofia generated 0.84 expected goals per game while conceding 1.85. The hosts must also reconfigure their lineup without Mohamed Brahimi, who is out due to suspension.

Monaco unbeaten but missing top scorer Brunner

Monaco arrive in Sofia with a five-match unbeaten sequence in domestic competition. They drew 2-2 at home against Toulouse on 10 October 2026, defeated Lens 2-1 on 18 September 2026, and drew 1-1 away at Strasbourg on 12 September 2026. That run also includes a 2-1 victory away against Paris Saint Germain on 4 September 2026 and a 2-0 home win over Marseille on 30 August 2026.

However, the French side travel with several confirmed absences. Leading scorer Paris Brunner, who has scored 6 goals this season across all competitions, is ruled out through suspension. Eric Dier and Mamadou Coulibaly are also unavailable due to injuries. Across their last five matches with chance tracking, Monaco generated 1.11 expected goals per game while allowing 1.38.

Our model firmly expects a Monaco win

Our forecasting model firmly expects a Monaco win on Thursday. The evaluation reflects the contrast in recent outcomes between the two squads: Monaco enter on the back of three victories and two draws from five fixtures, including wins over Paris Saint Germain and Marseille, while CSKA Sofia have dropped three straight European ties without a win since early August.

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