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Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Thursday 5 November, 8pm UK time
With their domestic form in freefall, Sunderland will hope to maintain their unbeaten record in the Europa League on Thursday, when they welcome Dinamo Zagreb to the Stadium of Light.
The hosts come into the clash with seven points from their opening three games in the league phase, whereas their opponents are in 18th place with just four points, and Jerko Leko will be taking charge of his first game as interim boss of the visitors.
Sunderland vs Dinamo Zagreb preview and form guide
Sunderland suffered a damaging 3-1 defeat against Coventry last weekend, a result that cemented the club to last place in the Premier League with just five points after nine matchweeks.
If there was one positive for Regis Le Bris, it would be that his side are only two points from 17th-placed Manchester United, but the threat of relegation will mean that domestic football must take priority over Europe.
In last season’s league phase, 16 points were needed to finish in the top eight and automatically advance into the knockouts, so moving onto 10 points at the halfway stage would represent an incredible achievement.
Sunderland’s most recent European contest was a 1-1 stalemate with Lech Poznan on October 22, though they managed to beat AZ Alkmaar 1-0 in September, while also winning 2-1 against Torreense on October 15.
Those victories in Europe stand as two of their three wins in their last 10 clashes, with the club losing five times, and they failed to triumph in any of their six league fixtures in that period.
Dinamo Zagreb are coming into Thursday’s game in turmoil, with Mario Kovacevic dismissed following his side’s 1-0 defeat against Rudes in the Croatian top flight, with the loss leaving them in second place with 22 points.
The decision to move on from the head coach was somewhat surprising given his side are only four points from first-placed Hajduk Split with a game in hand, and Kovacevic will have believed he had credit in the bank after leading the team to the title in 2025-26.
Leko inherits a team that drew 0-0 with Hapoel Beer Sheva, beat Anderlecht 1-0 and then lost 4-2 at home to NEC Nijmegen after leading 2-1 in the Europa League, and he will take heart from the fact only three points separate his team from sixth-placed Union SG.
The current interim coached Dinamo’s under-19 side last campaign before taking charge of the B team, and a win for the 46-year-old will be vital if he hopes to take charge on a permanent basis.
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Team news and predicted lineups: Sunderland vs Dinamo Zagreb
Sunderland team news
Nordi Mukiele is ruled out because he is still in concussion protocols after an accidental collision against Leeds, though Le Bris expects him back for the visit of Chelsea on Sunday.
Habib Diarra is set for more weeks on the sidelines after suffering another hamstring injury, while Dan Ballard and Romaine Mundle have both been ruled out.
Brian Brobbey returned from his hamstring problem to start at Coventry and has been managed carefully since, which leaves Wilson Isidor or Timur Tutierov in line to start up front on Thursday.
Chemsdine Talbi, Alan Browne, Jocelin Ta Bi, Melker Ellborg and Ajibola Alese cannot play because they are not in Sunderland's European squad.
Sunderland predicted lineup vs Dinamo Zagreb
Roefs; Hume, Danso, O'Nien, Methalie; Xhaka, Sadiki; Meunier, Le Fee, Fofana; Isidor
Dinamo Zagreb team news
Scott McKenna is out with a muscle injury that could keep him sidelined for about two weeks, and the Scotland defender has been ruled out of his country's upcoming Nations League games as a result.
Stjepan Radeljic has a finger injury, and Dani Rodriguez is a doubt with a muscle problem, so Niko Galesic and Sergi Dominguez look the likeliest centre-back pairing.
Luka Ivanusec was reported ill with a virus on October 29, but while he came off the bench at Rudes, perhaps fans should expect to see Josip Misic at the base of midfield.
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Dinamo Zagreb predicted lineup vs Sunderland
Kotarski; Valincic, Galesic, Dominguez, Perez Vinlof; Misic; Almena, Stojkovic, Zajc, Hoxha; Beljo
Vinlof
Head-to-head: Sunderland vs Dinamo Zagreb
Sunderland and Dinamo Zagreb have never met in any competitive setting, so neither team will fully know what to expect.
It should be noted that this is Sunderland’s first European campaign since 1973, meaning they do not have a particularly storied history against any team in UEFA tournaments.
Dinamo Zagreb have faced English teams nine times since the start of 2019-20, taking on Arsenal, Chelsea, West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City, and they lost six of those clashes while winning just three times.
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Our Sunderland vs Dinamo Zagreb prediction and tips
Odds correct as of Tuesday, 3 November 2026, 19:20 GMT.
- Enzo Le Fee to open the scoring for Sunderland
- Wilson Isidor to add the second from the striker's role
- Dion Beljo to score Dinamo's reply
Lewis is an avid writer and football fan, with years of experience working as a freelance journalist across text, audio and video.
As a Liverpool supporter, Lewis has frequently covered the club of his heart, though he has also branched out considerably, interviewing and writing about personalities across the football sphere.