Mark van Bommel took a big step towards the play-offs for the Conference League with Royal Antwerp FC on Thursday. The Dutch coach saw his team win 1-3 in the third preliminary round at the Norwegian Lillestrøm SK thanks to two goals from Radja Nainggolan.
Dinis Almeida opened the score for Antwerp after five minutes by heading in from a corner from Koji Miyoshi. Magnus Knudsen equalized Lillestrøm in the extra time of the first half.
Antwerp quickly took the lead again in the second half. Nainggolan scored and also this time the assist was from Miyoshi. In the final phase, the thirty-time Belgian international was again accurate. Vincent Janssen had a basic place with the visitors and was replaced after more than an hour.
The return between Royal Antwerp and Lillestrøm will be played in Antwerp next Thursday. The winner of the diptych qualifies for the play-offs.
If Antwerp settles with Lillestrøm in the third preliminary round, the Belgians will face Breidablik from Iceland or Istanbul Basaksehir from Turkey in the play-offs.
Antwerp recorded its fourth consecutive victory in Norway. In the Belgian league, Van Bommel’s team won in the first two matches against KV Mechelen (0-2) and Zulte Waregem (1-0). In between, FC Drita from Kosovo was defeated in the second heat of the Conference League.