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Key events
We go again in Trabzonspor v Hearts.
Yalcouye slots home calmly for Brighton, but was at least 63 yards offside.
From the Poznan away end.
Off we go again in Jablonec and off we go again in Poznan.
I have a slightly different take on this: United have finally broken Bruno, jiggering his career with a series of poor decisions and broken promises. Of course, he’s responsible for his own behaviour, but the man is mad as hell and he’s not going to take this any more. Imagine United in the years since he signed without him.
Half-time reading:
Conference League half-times
Europa League half-times
HALF-TIME: Trabzonspor 1-0 Hearts
Salah’s penalty is the difference but Heart, having been gubbed 7-1 by Celtic at the weekend, are in this game.
HALF-TIME: Lech Poznan 0-1 Sunderland
An entertaining first half, both sides looking to attack and Sunderland doing it better.
In Turkey, Claudio Braga attacks the by-line, Cabral slides in, doesn’t get the ball … and the ref say no penalty. I’d very much like to see his working.
HALF-TIME: Jablonec 0-0 Brighton
Brighton look dangerous but haven’t created much in the way of clear-cut chances. I assume at some point, Hurzeler will maker changes to get the win.
“No fan of the pink Sunderland kit,” emails Tim Smith, “but it gets a pass due to the absence of gaudy sponsorship across the front. It just looks cleaner to my eyes. Brighton’s throwback kit against Arsenal this season was a stunner, for the same reason. I’m a Leeds (and Adidas) fan, but the current sponsor/logo on the shirt makes it a dealbreaker for me.”
Yeah, the Leeds logo is grim gear, but you accepts your money you takes your choice. And agree, the Brighton one is a work of art.
It’s quieter than it was in Poznan, Sunderland controlling midfield, but as I type, Danso, sent off at Bournemouth last Sunday, misses his kick and pulls Ishak down accordingly’; he’s booked. In better news for him, Black Sherif, his favourite Ghanaian singer – we saw him at a gig where my non-football-loving wife shamed me by recognising him – is coming to London on 4th December. I can’t recommend him highly enough – if you can get there, do it. Here’s a playlist to get you going.
And here’s an interview.
Rutter finds Osman at inside-left, a lovely ball arced down the line and inside. Inside the box, he shows the defender too much of the it but bundles through one challenge, only to stumble into the second and lose possession.
These Brighton players have loads to play for. Imagine the atmosphere around their training ground at the moment, and how much those not starting in the league want to force their way in. Given the struggles of various among the rich clubs, they’ve a proper chance of making top five – and who knows what else.
Rutter backs in inside the box and, expertly found by Gross, he controls and spins away from goal, his marker too tight, then lashes a shot just wide of the near post.
GOAL! Trabzonspor 1-0 Hearts (Salah pen 32)
Salah watches Reus go right and clips over his legs and into the middle of the net.
PENALTY TRABZONSPOR!
31 min Franculino beats one man then another as he weaves into the box, Magnusson steps across him, and that’s an easy call for the ref.
Poznan are second in the Ekstraklasa, with 27 goals in 10 games, easily the most in the league, and they look likely tonight. I’d be shocked if this contest ends 0-1, but Sunderland should be good for at least one more goal too.
In Turkey, Trabzonspor are dominating against Hearts, but they’ve Andre Onana in goal and one can never be sure when he might toss one in: when Man United were last in the Champions League, they scored 12 goals in three matches against Bayern, Galatasaray twice and FCK, earning a single draw, largely because of his work in net.
Back in Poznan, Sunderland find Fofana, left side of the box, he shoots low and hard … hitting the far post! But the ball is then cut back to Xhaka who, eight yards out, should score. He sweeps goalwards … and straight at the keeper.
I guess he’s one of the first of the new guard of manager who had no playing career to speak of, but had a talent for understanding the game and where once, they’d have been a coach if that, now they’re running clubs. I’m certain we’ll see much more of this. Oh, but as I type, Verbruggen has to save sprawlingly at his near post.
Every time I’ve looked at Brighton, who show eight changes from their weekend win, they’ve got Jablonec boxed. The way Fabian Hurzeler has inculcated a style that allows players to come in and out without it changing, is exceptional.
GOAL! Rennes 1-1 Juventus (Al-Tamaari 15)
A cross to the back post is sent back across and Al-Taamari sticks away.
GOAL! Sturm Graz 1-0 Marseille (Diakite 13)
Three against Grazer at the weekend and now, the ball is given away in midfield, Weinhandl, the 17-year-old, wins it back, slides through the centre, and Diakite leans one way to slot confidently the other.
And he’s playing well, pulling wide and crossing to win a corner. Back to the pink kit, given this is its second away outing in Europe, against teams with whom Sunderland’s colours don’t clash, we have to assume someone at the club is doing their best to make it legendary. It’d go nice with Frankfurt in May.
“It’s hard not to root for Timur Tutierov,” writes Kári Tulinius. “He is a Crimean Tatar refugee. He was just nine when Russia invaded and he fled with his family to Spain. Four years later they moved back to Ukraine. He’s never been back to his home.”
Football is the greatest, part 67,907,336.
Sunderland fans in Poznan. I can only imagine the scenes, given a wild fanbase who feared they’d never get to do this.
GOAL! Juventus 1-0 Rennes (Celik 5)
Don’t Juve need that. In loads of trouble, eighth in the league and with Luciano Spalletti fighting for his job, a lovely touch from McKennie allows Woltemade to send Celik though at inside-right, and he finishes confidently into the far corner.
This is such an open game – twice, Poznan have been inside the Sunderland box looking dangerous, Roefs smothering one shot, just about.
That took 78 seconds – and remember, Sunderland scored at 90+3 of 90+5 in their last game against Torreense. The Prem, problems, but in Europe they’re flying!
GOAL! Lech Poznan 0-1 Sunderland (Tutierov 2)
Poznan are bottom of the Europa League and already, we’ve seen why. The ball goes back to Lis, who sells Gurgul short with the ball out wide. Angulo snaps into the challenge, needs only one touch to set, and crosses for Tutierov to head home his first Sunderland goal!
We’re under way in all our early games.
Sunderland are in their pink kit once more. One of those that, if it gets games to go with it, will become a classic. If they get walloped in it, on the other hand, it’ll go down in infamy.
Righto, our various teams are tunnelled and, for now, I’m watching the three matches below.
Trabzonspor (4-3-3): Onana; Cabral, Özkaçkar, Akaudin, Kabasakal; Bouchouari, Mendy, Jabol-Folcarelli; Saviolo, Franculino, Salah.
Hearts (4-3-3): Reus; Borchgrevink, McCart, Fagan-Walcott, Altenga; Guendouz, Magnússon, Braga; Mato, Wilson, Miller.
Jablonec v Brighton & Hove Albion
Jablonec (4-2-3-1): Hanuš; Sláma, Pavlović, Tekijaški, Cedidla; Okeke, Sedláček; Polidar, Alioum, Tchanturishvili; Růsek. Subs: Mihelak, Zorvan, Nykrin, Soucek, Chramosta, Holly, Nebyla, Maly, Kubat, Kuol, Novak.
Brighton & Hove Albion (4-3-3): Verbruggen; Hadjam, Boscagli, Svoboda, Costina; Gross, Hinshelwood, Yalcouye; O’Riley, Rutter, Osman. Subs: McGill, Hall, Dunk, Promise, Chema, Kostoulas, Kadioglu, Ayari, Vuskovic, Oriola, Nti, Ibrahim.
Lech Poznan v Sunderland
Lech Poznan (4-2-3-1): Lis; Joel Pereira, Skrzypczak, Yegebe, Gurgul; Murawski, Kozubal; Wålemark, Rodriguez, Hakans; Ishak. Subs: Obremski, Pruchniewski,Bergrren, Agnero, Bengtsson, Jagiello, Bartczak, Szymczak, Palma, Janyska.
Sunderland (4-2-3-1): Roefs; Mukiele, Danso, O’Nien, Methalie; Xhaka, Ahokal; Angulo, Diarra, Fofana; Tutierov. Subs: Moore, Rigg, Alderete, Reinildo, Sadiki, Le Fee, Hume, Whittaker, Ogunsuyi, Jones, Scott, Proctor.
OH MY COMPLETE AND UTTER EVERLOVING DAYS!
Preamble
It’s been a strange start to the season for Sunderland and I’m not just talking about those pink Elvis kits. Yes, that is a real sentence. They’ve had some rotten luck – if they could’ve picked two players to avoid injury, Dan Ballard and Brian Brobbey would probably have been them – and, after last season’s outrageous exploits, they now sit bottom of the Premier League.
However! Making their first foray into Europe in 52 years, they won their first home game then, on their first trip abroad, they conceded a ridiculous opener, equalised, had a late penalty confiscated … and scored an incredible injury-time winner which was also Noah Sadiki’s first goal for the club, all of which combined into one of the great away-end goons. And no, I’m not enumerating it in such detail because my best mate had to cry off late doors due to a work crisis, I promise; by way of compensation, I’ve demanded he furnish us with photos from Poznan.
So, Sunderland’s trip to Poland will form the centrepiece of our early coverage, but that’s not the half of what we’ve got going on. Little more than a decade ago, if someone told us Milan were going to Bournemouth, we’d have assumed it was in holiday and told them not to miss Sega World or Splashdown in Poole. Now, though, they’re visiting for a game of football, one of the biggest ever played in the town, and Dean Court will be bouncing for what is our featured match in the second part of the evening.
And, in among all of that, we’ve got Crystal Palace’s trip to Besiktas and one of the great – not a word I use lightly in this context – town centre grounds, plus the linguistic derby of Celtic v Celta, Juventus v Rennes, and form team Brighton’s jaunt to Jablonec in the Conference.
Kick-offs: 5.45pm BST and 8pm BST
#Lech #Poznan #Sunderland #Juventus #Rennes #Europa #League #live #Europa #League
