Conference League Third Round Delivers a Night Full of Drama Across Europe
Thursday's Conference League third qualifying round produced 27 matches, and while several results went as expected, plenty of others delivered genuine drama and shifted the balance heading into second legs.
Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kyiv edged out Qarabağ 1-0, though the Azerbaijani side — who began their European campaign in the Europa League — went on to be eliminated in the second round of that competition following two scoreless draws and a penalty-shootout loss to last season's Bulgarian Cup holders, CSKA Sofia.
Borac Banja Luka, who were knocked out by Levski Sofia in the Champions League's first qualifying round, bounced back with a 1-0 win over Belarusian champions ML Vitebsk — a side that, notably, also began its European journey in the Champions League and could have faced Levski themselves had they gotten past Universitatea Craiova in the first round.
Braga beat Dinamo Minsk 1-0, though the return leg will be played in Stara Zagora at Beroe's stadium rather than in Belarus, due to the disruption Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine continues to cause for the international sporting calendar in parts of Eastern Europe. Braga reached the Europa League semifinal last season — eliminating Levski along the way — but a slip-up here would mean an early European exit this time around.
It was a rough night for Bulgarian goalkeeper Plamen Andreev, whose Debrecen side were thumped 0-3 by Danish outfit Copenhagen.
Elsewhere, Armenia's Noah and Switzerland's Sion shared a wild 2-2 draw, with both teams finishing the match down to ten men. CFR Cluj were routed 5-0 at home by Norway's Tromsø, leaving Romania on course to have no representatives left in the competition following FCSB's exit in the previous round.
Hajduk Split were rampant away to Žalgiris, winning 5-2 in Lithuania to all but seal their spot in the next round. Four-time European champions Ajax also moved a step closer to the play-off round with a 3-1 win over Ireland's Shelbourne at the Johan Cruyff Arena. Serbian giants Partizan cruised past Kazakhstan's Tobol 3-0, with a late goal pushing the match into 11 minutes of stoppage time. And Twente, the former club of Nikolay Mihaylov, thrashed Slovakia's Dunajská Streda 6-0 on home soil.