HJK vs VPS prediction 08.10.2026 | Veikkausliiga

Although HJK won most of the Veikkausliiga titles in the previous decade, they could, in their third year in a row, remain without the most important trophy in domestic football. HJK trail KuPS and Inter Turku by six points and will need their best form in the rest of the season to sneak to a 34th Finnish championship title. Joonas Rantanen's team didn't play well in matches before the international break, with only one victory in the previous four matches. In the previous game, they played 1-1 on the road against Gnistan. The visitors dominated possession, but Rantanen's team failed to turn that superiority into more goals. 

HJK have some problems with missing players. Amara Nallo, David Ezeh, and Eemil Toivonen are out for Thursday, while Lucas Lingman and Mustafa Ameen are questionable. Also, Pyry Mentu, Kaius Simojoki, and Liam Moller were with Finland U21 in recent weeks, and since they have a game in Kosovo on Tuesday, it is unclear whether they will be back in time to play against VPS. 

VPS have made improvements compared to last season. This year, they are in the championship group and even have a chance to reach the Conference League places if things go their way in the final rounds. However, VPS didn't play well in recent matches, losing three of their previous four games. In the most recent outing, Jussi Nuorela's team lost 2-0 at home against KuPS. The hosts surely deserved more that time, as they finished with xG of 1.59, while the visitors had 0.41. 

VPS are playing well with Jussi Nuorela in charge, so it is no wonder the head coach signed a new contract during the international break. After extending the agreement, Nuorela said that he sees a lot of potential in the team and believes they could develop even better.

VPS have an almost full squad for the trip to Helsinki. They will be without Jonathan Muzinga and Vilmer Ronnberg.