Last minute penalty and dream goal
Bayer Leverkusen continued their winning streak in the Europa League and secured their progression on matchday four. The Bundesliga leaders, coached by Xabi Alonso, won 1-0 (0-0) at Qarabağ FK on Thursday thanks to a penalty in the third minute of stoppage time. Victor Boniface confidently converted to Baku, the Azerbaijani capital. After four of the six group matches, Leverkusen, who have not lost an official match this season, have twelve points.
Alonso relied on rotation in his starting XI. Compared to the 3-2 victory at TSG Hoffenheim last Saturday, the Spaniard made six changes. Among others, goalkeeper Matej Kovar and midfielder Robert Andrich were new to the team. Bayer did not start the match well. It wasn’t until the 23rd minute that the « Werkself » came close to threatening Qarabağ’s goal for the first time. After a corner from Alejandro Grimaldo, so strong this season, Piero Hincapié’s header was denied by former Leverkusen goalkeeper Andrey Lunev in the hosts’ goal.
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The outsider, who had lost 5-1 in the first leg, played the match openly. Qarabağ quickly crossed the midfield several times and reached the Bayer penalty area. But the hosts weren’t really dangerous at the start. It was only after a misunderstanding between Hincapié and Kovar that things became complicated. Bayer’s backup goalkeeper, who replaces captain Lukas Hradecky in international matches, had no problem with a Juninho shot.
After the break, Leverkusen initially took more control. Bayer 04 had more possession of the ball and were able to pass the ball well through midfield from time to time. But the guests rarely entered the penalty area. In the 66th minute, center forward Boniface became dangerous, but Lunev reacted well and saved.
On the other hand, Juninho hit his own captain Abdellah Zoubir in a promising position instead of scoring. Yassine Benzia also did not aim precisely enough for the hosts, cheered by frenzied supporters. Leverkusen actually didn’t do much offensively in the final phase. The penalty then brought a chance of victory, which Boniface did not miss.
Eintracht Frankfurt also wins against HJK Helsinki in the Conference League
Thanks to luck and a dream goal from Farès Chaïbi, Eintracht Frankfurt won 1-0 (1-0) at HJK Helsinki and secured its place in the Conference League this winter. In a temperature slightly above zero and on artificial turf, Chaïbi (31st minute) scored from the entrance to the penalty area in the top corner. Given that PAOK Thessaloniki played 2-2 against FC Aberdeen in the side match, the Bundesliga club’s success means they have secured the second round and have the best chance of winning the group. The match on November 30 against PAOK will be the preliminary decision. Only the winner of the group goes directly to the round of 16.
The hosts, beaten 6-0 in the first leg and who had already finished the season a few weeks ago by winning their 33rd Finnish league title, tried to avoid another disaster and set their own pace. However, a lot got stuck at the start, even though the Frankfurt team did not put up a consistent fight at the start – but also did not create enough scoring chances.
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The first big chance (7th) had great entertainment value, when Chaïbi skillfully brought the ball to goal with his heel and Helsinki goalkeeper Niki Mäenpää headed it towards the post. In the seconds that followed, it was chaotic: one after the other, Willian Pacho and Hugo Larsson pushed the ball, which managed to be narrowly pushed away by the Helsinki players. The Finns then had no chance when Algerian Chaïbi made it 1-0, who fired the ball into the right corner from the left edge of the area.
“If Helsinki were more determined, it could be dangerous,” warned Eintracht sporting director Timmo Hardung at half-time. “We have a lot of control over the game going forward, but we would like to have a few more chances and goals.” The hope did not come true, as Helsinki worked courageously to equalize in front of around 10,000 spectators and the Hessians fell short. do enough to score another goal. However, they almost made it 2-0 in the 54th minute thanks to striker Omar Marmoush. However, he missed it by around ten meters.
National goalkeeper Kevin Trapp (61st) proved to be a savior in an emergency by blocking with his (Site notre bureau spécialisé) a shot from Santeri Hostikka, who was charging towards him alone. It was precisely in this situation that it became clear that the coordination in the defensive chain was not optimal due to the loss of regular players Robin Koch and Tuta, replaced by Aurélio Buta and Hrvoje Smolcic. This also happened in the 68th minute, when the goal was conceded from an unjustified free kick, but was not recognized by the referee.
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