The Reds fall 3-2 with the 3-3 canceled out in the 97th minute. De Zerbi’s Brighton sweeps Ajax away. Betis scores 4, Friborg 5. Sporting Lisbon also wins in Atalanta’s group. Ok West Ham, Rangers and Molde
The surprise of the evening comes from Toulouse, where Liverpool falls sensationally, postponing their possible qualification for the Europa League round of 16. Instead, the Italian coaches celebrate: De Zerbi’s Brighton still mocks Ajax, Gattuso’s Marseille conquers Athens. Among the Eurorivals, in Atalanta’s group Sporting fails against Rakow while in Roma’s group Servette overturns Sheriff. A spell from Paquetà signs West Ham’s success over Olympiacos, all too easy for Real Betis and Freiburg.
aek-marseille 0-2
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The French deservedly win in Athens against Aek. Marseille took the lead in the 25th minute with Mbemba’s header from a corner, then several long-range shots that missed the target. At the start of the second half Pau Lopez outdoes Garcia’s header, in general Om holds the field better and in the 80th minute they come close to scoring a calm goal: Vitinha’s diagonal hit the post and goes out at the back. The former Roma goalkeeper did well to oppose Zuber at the end, but there was also a bit of luck on the side of Gattuso’s team, who then closed it out late in injury time with Sarr on the counterattack.
sporting-rakow 2-1
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Peaceful evening for Sporting, who took the challenge from the spot. In the 12th minute Racovitan holds St. Juste a few steps from the goal, it is a foul on a clear scoring opportunity, therefore expulsion and penalty. Gonçalves doesn’t make any mistakes and is impeccable even in the 52nd minute, when he scores his personal double from eleven meters away; this time, the decision was triggered by a clear handball in the area. Rundic tries to give his team hope by returning Adan’s rebound (71′), but it’s not enough.
west ham 1-0 olympiacos
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The Hammers suffer, but in the end prevail against Olympiacos. Busy first half for Paschalakis, who intervenes well on Aguerd (13′) and Benrahma (31′). Ward-Prowse wastes an excellent scoring opportunity from a good position in the 65th minute, but Paquetà decides the match on a throw from the midfielder; the volley from the Brazilian former Milan player was excellent (73′). In the final, the guests came close to equalizing with Camara’s post following the development of a corner.
REAL BETIS-ARIS LIMASSOL 4-1
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The Andalusians did not waver against Aris. The match goes downhill in the 34th minute, with Borja Iglesias thanking Vinicius’ perfect assist to tap into an empty net. The only scare for Real Betis occurred at the start of the second half, when Bengtsson equalized with a beautiful volley but was a few centimeters offside at the moment of the pass. The 2-0 was scored by Ruibal, who entered the area and unleashed a shot that left Vanà no escape (64′). There would also be time for a third goal, which did not arrive on the penalty awarded after on-field review for a fairly clear foul on Isco: Fekir saved the shot in the 76th minute. Not bad, because Roca takes care of securing the success, slipping well into the melee and finding the corner from a tight angle (79′). Kokorin scored the flag in the 84th minute with the goal unguarded, Betis’ poker went to Ezzalzouli at the end of a good personal move on the left wing.
rangers-sparta prague 2-1
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Only one team on the field in Glasgow, where Rangers get rid of Sparta Prague. Pereira opens the scoring after Gomez’s terrible mistake which opens the way for the opponent (17′). Three minutes and the Scots double their lead: Cantwell receives wide on the right, comes back and finds the far post with a precise low shot. Pereira comes close to scoring a brace, but his attempt lands on the post. In the second half the Czechs shook themselves and Haraslin, former Sassuolo, did well to finish under the crossbar after Preciado’s descent (77′) to make it 2-1. A few seconds pass and Pereira sees a goal disallowed for a push on Sorensen.
FREIBURG-BACKA TOPOLA 5-0
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No problem for Freiburg, with Backa Topola unable to put up any resistance. In the 24th minute Rohl scored, making a good turn following Eggestein’s central tip. Rohl was again denied a brace from the post (38′), but the double materialized anyway thanks to Eggestein who triangulated with Grifo and concluded by crossing in the 56th minute. The Serbs hint at a reaction and Freiburg closes it: Weisshaupt breaks through on the right and opens the plate, in the 69th minute the trio is served. The fourth goal bears the seal of Adamu, who receives from Doan and strikes the goalkeeper at the near post (80′), for the fifth however the roles are reversed and the Japanese face to face with the opposing goalkeeper makes no mistakes.
HACKEN-MOLDE 1-3
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Hacken can do very little, because Molde already closes it down in the first half. The one-two is signed first by Gulbrandsen (oriented and diagonal control in the 16th minute) and then by Eriksen, who resolves a melee in the area in the 24th minute. The Swedes halved the gap with Hrstic in the 65th minute, the quickest to deposit a loose ball in the area after the goalkeeper’s clearance. Eriksen performs a feat with a precise left-footed shot into the top corner to seal the victory (86′).
TOULOUSE-LIVERPOOL 3-2
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The best opportunity for Klopp’s team was at the start of the match: in the 4th minute Gomez hit the crossbar with his head following a dead ball. The French are growing as the minutes pass and at half an hour Suazo just misses the target in the splits. It is the prelude to the Toulouse goal, scored by Donnum, who steals the ball from Tsimikas and passes Kelleher, also taking advantage of a deflection. The Reds’ push is sterile in the second half and Dallinga punishes Liverpool again: he receives in the area, turns from true center forward and finds the winning diagonal (59′). The Reds cut back in the 73rd minute: Joe Gomez’s cross, Magri doesn’t see the ball and inadvertently pushes it into his own goal. The Toulouse player makes amends two minutes later: an approximate exit by Kelleher allows the onrushing Magri to strike with the goal almost empty. In the 89th minute, Diogo Jota skips half the team and shortens, but his feat is in vain, even if Quansah sees a goal disallowed with time expired (in the 97th minute) due to a handball from MacAllister at the start of the action.
AJAX-BRIGHTON 0-2
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Ansu Fati and Adingra, Adingra and Ansu Fati: changing the order of the factors does not change the result for Brighton. In the 15th minute the former Barcelona player collects an assist from his teammate and clears Ramaj, then the roles are reversed in the 53rd minute, when Adingra benefits from the pass and crosses it perfectly. Brighton leaves the pitch, but Ajax aren’t even lucky, as in the case of Brobbey’s double hit post in the 77th minute. The push from the Dutch is desperate, but it is not enough to revive the fortunes of the match.
SERVETTE-SHERIFF 2-1
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The balance is broken in the 12th minute: Mbekeli looks for the cross after a contact bordering on a foul, but the trajectory is deflected by Severin who fatally beats his own goalkeeper. The Swiss have a couple of chances with Bedia, who first shoots high and then fails to finish due to a gross inattention from the opposing rearguard. In the 84th minute Roullier equalised, clearing up a melee in the area, but in injury time Bedia completed the late comeback with a penalty. Zohouri sent off for protesting after the referee’s decision.
QARABAG-BAYER LEVERKUSEN 0-1
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As expected, it is the team coached by Xabi Alonso that plays the game, but a lot of ball possession is not synonymous with offensive production and Qarabag is threatening. The only opportunity for Bayer came midway through the first half at the feet of Boniface, but his shot was neutralized by Lunev. In the 79th minute, however, Benzia missed the probable matchpoint by turning wide on the ball proposed from the left. In full injury time Bayer won a penalty for handball, Boniface appeared from the spot and wrong-footed Lunev and sealed the success. And for the Germans, at least participation in the playoffs is certain.
RENNES-PANATHINAIKOS 3-1
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There’s certainly no boredom in Roazhon Park. In the 9th minute the match broke the deadlock with a colossal pass from Brignoli, who allowed Rieder’s long-range free kick to pass under his legs. Yet for Rennes the match seemed to get complicated in the 32nd minute, when Belocian got sent off for a hold in the area on a clear scoring opportunity and Ioannidis equalized from the spot. Djuricic has a good ball on the right in the 56th minute, but Gallon responds well to the near post. When the Greeks push, Rennes punishes on the restart: a lethal restart, concluded by Blas’ deflected shot which ends up at the feet of Salah, who only has to push it into the net. Three turns of the clock and the French even go further: Vilhena’s stomp in the area on Matic is worth the penalty, converted by Blas.
MACCABI HAIFA-VILLARREAL 1-2
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On neutral ground in Larnaca, Villarreal makes a great comeback in the Maccabi final. The Spaniards become dangerous in the 19th minute with Brereton, who Keouf opposes splendidly. Seck scored the opener in the 32nd minute, heading well from a dead ball. The Israeli goalkeeper was the great protagonist of the evening: in the 36th minute he saved Sorloth’s penalty, which was repeated. Trigueros kicks, who changes angle, and saves again. The equalizer came in the 84th minute, thanks to Alex Baena who slipped Keouf from the center of the area, then it was Sorloth who turned it around almost as time expired, being ready for the goalkeeper’s rebound after Moreno’s shot.
LASK LINZ -UNION SAINT GILLOISE 3-0
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There is no match in Linz, where Lask wins easily. In the 24th minute Horvath opened the scoring with a penalty, while in injury time in the first half Talovjerov doubled the lead with a great header from a corner. Zulj closes the score, on the execution of a free kick from the attacking midfield: Ziereis hits the crossbar with his head, he is ready for the tap-in which is worth the hat trick.
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