Dinamo Zagreb enter the play-offs in formidable domestic form, unbeaten in four matches and averaging nearly three goals per game. Five changes from their regular XI suggest squad rotation, yet the Croatian champions still field a strong side at home. Viking are an unknown quanti…
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Sign inGNK Dinamo Zagreb host Norwegian side Viking FK at their Stadion Maksimir home in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League play-off round on Tuesday, 18 August 2026. A place in the lucrative league phase is the prize over the two legs, with the return fixture scheduled for the Lyse Arena in Stavanger on 26 August.
Dinamo are aiming to return to Europe's top table for the first time since the 2022/23 season. For Viking, the tie represents a shot at history — the Stavanger club have never previously reached the Champions League group or league phase.
Scotland international Scott McKenna, who last played in the competition proper with FC Copenhagen two years ago, is set to anchor the Dinamo defence. The hosts will, however, be forced into a change between the posts. First-choice goalkeeper Ivan Filipovic was sent off for a professional foul during a recent qualifier after misjudging his run outside the area, with Italian referee Davide Massa brandishing a straight red card. Back-up Ivan Nevistic was introduced as a substitute and is in line to start the play-off first leg.
No specific injury or suspension concerns have been reported in the Viking camp, with the Norwegian side expected to travel to Zagreb at full strength as they aim to upset the Croatian champions.
Zagreb's path to the play-off round has been commanding. In the third qualifying round they dismantled their opponents 5-0 at home before sealing a 7-1 aggregate victory with a 2-1 away win on 11 August. In the previous round they edged past their opponents 4-3 on aggregate, with a 3-2 home win on 28 July proving decisive.
Midfielder Josip Misic was on target during that third-round progression, and head coach Sergej Jakirovic will look to the experienced duo of Luka Kacavenda and Mislav Valincic to provide the creative spark in the final third.
Viking arrive in Zagreb with momentum. The Eliteserien outfit are unbeaten in their last five domestic matches, a run that includes a 3-0 away victory on 1 August, a 2-1 home win over Sarpsborg on 8 August, and a 2-1 away success a week earlier. Their last competitive defeat stretches back further still, suggesting a side brimming with confidence as they enter the most significant European tie in the club's history.
The enforced change in Dinamo's goal could be the decisive subplot of the first leg. Ivan Nevistic is expected to deputise for the suspended Filipovic, and Viking will almost certainly test the reserve goalkeeper early. How Nevistic handles the occasion in front of 37,000 at Maksimir could set the tone for the entire tie.
Dinamo are next in line to snatch Pot 3 status for the league phase draw should other seeded play-off contenders falter. That would place them alongside the likes of Feyenoord, Napoli, and RB Leipzig. For Viking, the prize is entry to Pot 4 and a place alongside Slavia Prague, VfB Stuttgart, and Como among the competition's elite. The second leg in Norway on 26 August will decide who progresses.
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