In the latest instalment of the UEFA Conference League 2025/26 campaign, Shamrock Rovers face AEK Athens. The Hoops head to Athens with the FAI Cup Final on the horizon and may evidently take priority. They are looking to avoid three straight defeats in the League Phase after defeats to Sparta Prague and NK Celje leave a mountain to climb.
Most recently, Shamrock Rovers closed out the 2025 League of Ireland campaign last Saturday. They lost 2-1 to Sligo Rovers, with a heavily rotated starting lineup. A full game was given to youngsters within the squad, such as Egor Vassenin and Cian Barrett. Rovers were then handed the trophy at full-time as attention turned to lifting more silverware on Sunday.
Recent form
As Shamrock Rovers headed toward the finish line of the League of Ireland, they began to drop points. Three consecutive defeats to St. Patrick’s Athletic, Shelbourne, and Derry City raised concerns among supporters. The losses came as Rovers were all but confirmed as champions, just needing one point during that time.
Stephen Bradley’s side have their backs against the wall after opening the campaign with back-to-back defeats. This year’s draw has not been as kind to Rovers as last season’s was. If their campaign is to surpass the festive period, they will need to begin picking up points.
Last Wednesday’s 1-0 victory over Galway United confirmed the club’s 22nd title. This allowed starting the Sligo Rovers encounter with a heavily rotated side. The entire squad will be used, as Bradley touched on last week, meaning Rovers may not begin with a fully strengthened 11.
Opposition
AEK Athens is a side well-versed in European competition and will be no pushover on Thursday evening. The Greek side also lost to the Slovenian outfit, NK Celje, before beating Aberdeen 6-0.
The side currently sits third in the Super League, only behind UEFA Champions League outfit Olympiacos and familiar foe PAOK Thessaloniki. They are on the back of a 1-0 victory over Panetolikos, who are 10th in the league. The winning goal came in the 92nd minute, from Orbelin Pineda, a player to watch out for in the middle of the park.
Pineda is key to how AEK Athens operates, recording a 93.35% pass accuracy rate across the Super League and UEFA Conference League. He has previously played for clubs such as Chivas and Celta Vigo and has 87 caps for Mexico.
Despite this side putting six past the Scottish side Aberdeen, they lack an out-and-out goal threat. They have a joint top goal scorer in Frantzdy Pierrot and Petros Mantalos, both netting just two. AEK Athens does have a solid defensive setup, conceding just seven goals in nine Super League games.
Team news
Stephen Bradley spoke to club media on the injury front, providing an update as to who is in the mix for the tie. He ruled Aaron Greene out of the clash as his injury lingers, but expects both Danny Mandroiu and Josh Honohan to feature.
Honohan appeared to pick up a knock in the title-clinching victory over Galway United last Wednesday. He was not included in the squad for the final game against Sligo Rovers. Expectedly, Bradley did not see the value in risking him in a fixture that had no impact on the season.
Mandroiu last featured for the Hoops in the 2-0 defeat to NK Celje two weeks ago. He started that fixture but was withdrawn after 58 minutes and has not been in the squad since.
Greene’s injury has ruled him out for some time, not featuring under Bradley since the 1-1 draw with Cork City in September. Since June, the striker has played just three times, playing a total of 74 minutes.
There is an expectation that Rovers will rotate as this side is on the brink of making history. With Sunday’s FAI Cup Final on the minds of the coaching staff, it is expected that more of the squad will be used.
Key battles
There will be key battles all across the pitch, and this will largely be decided by how much rotation is chosen by Stephen Bradley. Ahead of the FAI Cup Final on Sunday, it’s anticipated that the five-time league-winning manager will alter his normal starting lineup to protect players from missing the historic final.
AEK Athens offers a strong midfield base, and Orbelin Pineda is likely to cause issues for the Shamrock Rovers backline. Roberto Lopes would be expected to start alongside two other centre-backs. He will require experience alongside him if Rovers are to pick up anything from this encounter.
As mentioned on The Milltown Way podcast, this is a huge week for 36-year-old Rory Gaffney. Due to Michael Noonan being away at the FIFA U-17 World Cup, more will be required of the Galway native. Rovers can be expected to absorb a lot of pressure and will require Gaffney and Graham Burke to take any rare opportunities that arise.
Impact of outcome
Due to this format of the competition only being in its second year, Shamrock Rovers only have last year’s standings to go by. In which case, seven points can be enough to avoid being knocked out of the competition after the League Phase.
Rovers have yet to pick up a point after two games, and a defeat on Thursday would mean they cannot suffer another loss. Bradley’s side currently sits 33rd in the table. If Rovers were to leave Greece empty-handed, in turn, they would be staring down the barrel of an early European exit.
The side travelled to Austria last year to face Rapid Wien and earned an unexpected 1-1 draw; a similar outcome on Thursday would be monumental.
Final word
Shamrock Rovers head to Greece knowing a loss would all but guarantee their exit from the UEFA Conference League. They face Shakhtar Donetsk in the next fixture at Tallaght Stadium, a much tougher opponent. A draw will be required of the Hoops on Thursday evening to keep the European dream alive. Barring Sunday’s colossal fixture in mind, a positive result against AEK Athens could bode well for the squad’s mindset.
AEK Athens is currently 12th in the table and will target a top-eight finish. They face a trip to last year’s semifinalists, Fiorentina, in their next European outing.