Celta Vigo vs PAOK prediction 26.02.2026 | Europa League

Celta Vigo have an excellent season. They are sixth in La Liga and are in contention for another year in the Europa or Conference League. Celta were solid lately, with only one defeat in the last six matches. In the most recent outing, Claudio Giraldez's team won 2-0 at home against Mallorca. The hosts ended with xG of 2.51, while the visitors had only 0.04, so Celta's victory never really came into question.

Celta's head coach, Claudio Giraldez, described the game against Mallorca as a monologue. He said, "It was a one-sided affair, Celta attacking and Mallorca defending. The proof is that we had twenty shots on goal and they only had one. We patiently built up our game, creating chances to score earlier. We defended very far from our goal, which is what we wanted. Perhaps we lacked a bit of ruthlessness in shooting more. The victory was very deserved; it's a shame it was decided so late in the game."

Pablo Duran is injured and will not play on Thursday night, while Alvaro Nunez and Hugo Sotelo are questionable.

PAOK are solid in the Greek Super League. They are third on the standings with five points fewer than the league leader, AEK, but with one game fewer played. On the other hand, PAOK are in a tough spot in the Europa League and will likely end their journey on Thursday night. Razvan Lucescu's team didn't play well lately, with only one victory in the last five matches across all competitions. In the most recent outing, PAOK played 1-1 on the road against AEL Larissa. The guests deserved much more in that game, as they had significantly better goal-scoring chances, but once again, terrible efficiency cost them points.

After a draw against AEL Larissa, PAOK's head coach, Razvan Lucescu, spoke about the reasons for the weaker form. He said, "I think the schedule we have doesn't allow us to be fresh. The team seems exhausted. The matches are consecutive, and we play every three days. We are not fresh, we do not train, we just recover and go to the next match."

PAOK have big problems with missing players. They will be without Andrija Zivkovic, Joan Sastre, Dimitrios Pelkas, Thomas Murg, Soualiho Meite, Giannis Konstantelias, Luka Ivanusec, Kiril Despodov, and Mahamadou Balde on Thursday in Vigo. Also, Dejan Lovren is questionable.