Three times, the people of Brussels could have showered the boiling Turkish stadium. Ivanovic could have opened the scoring. But he missed the ball on a first opportunity and Livakovic won his duel on the second. For his part, Sadiki also lost his duel while he was further away on the left.
Once again, the Union was well in the match. And once again, she will be punished in a major moment. From a set point, Becao won his duel, the ball arrived at Söyuncü who deceived Moris in the small rectangle. Subsequently, the Turks rebalanced trade. But the Union can blame themselves on the break since they were better for much of the game.
History repeats itself: at 10 against 11, the Union loses at Fenerbahçe but may have regrets (2-1)
A different second period
This half should not have escaped José Mourinho. The “Special One” who is going through complicated times after the defeat against Galatasaray this weekend, certainly had strong words at the break. For 20 minutes, the Turks began to strongly dominate the Brussels residents. Weaned from balls, the players were unable to get out and were cornered in their area.
Paradoxically, the USG turned its back during this highlight. She even got her head out of the water with some interesting situations. But we can’t do it again. With 20 minutes remaining, Mac Allister took a harsh, but deserved, red. A foul on Boufal could have been called at the start of the action. The referee let the game play and En-Nesyri was wrongly stopped by the Argentinian who returned to the locker room.
The beginning of the end for Burgess and co. The Englishman was ultimately guilty of one last mistake with an own goal where he can’t do much.
Further proof that attackers are cursed: Ivanovic missed a penalty in the final moments of the match. In the action that followed, the Croatian tried his luck from afar. The ball hit the post and Sykes finished the action. If the attackers are not there to score, the defenders do the job. But that is not enough to win a match of this level.
USG is off to a bad start in its Europa League adventure. She will have to remobilize against Kortrijk this weekend, before the second match in Europe against Bodo Glimt. To qualify, the Union will have to win. With efficient attackers or not.
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