The cards suddenly became completely different. Club Brugge sacked Al-Ittihad this afternoon in a disguised summit for the leadership position. Fifteen minutes before the end, Hans Vanaken scored with a header after Dante Vanzer missed a penalty fifteen minutes earlier. Top talent Antonio Nossa scored the score 0-2 in stoppage time. Can the union return on Wednesday in Jan Bridle?
Al Ittihad – Club Brugge in a nutshell:
- important momentA little before the hour, Lazar lays down after a light contact with Michel. The referee is relentless and takes the ball in place. Vanzer thinks his moment has come but misses the penalty. Fifteen minutes later Vanaken gave Club Brugge the lead and that didn’t give Blue and Black a hand anymore.
- man of the matchClub Brugge can thank goalkeeper Simon Mignolet. The Red Devil didn’t have to save any unexpected saves, but held 0 for the third time in a row in the Champions Qualifiers.
- noticeable: The moment of truth has come, but after that, forwards Deniz Ondev and Dante Vanzer didn’t give home. Incidentally, this is the first time this season that Union cannot score two games in a row and this is due to the lower level their strikers are at.
The best chances for Al-Ittihad in the intense first half
The random action between Union and Club Brugge began in the sunny, sweltering Duden Park. A dual start that would steer the title fight in an ultimate (?) direction.
Both teams gave a lot of smiles and struggles in the early stages. After a fierce chase, union captain Toma was rightly given a yellow card, Lazar and Balanta visited each other after another wrestling match.
It was the home team’s best chance, as Touma tested Mignolet’s reflexes with a powerful shot from close range. The club’s goalkeeper also had to interfere with the attempts of Labusin and Undav, but he always solved everything without any problems.
Just before the break, the goal could have been scored on the other side. Burgess actually lost an air duel to Lang, but the Dutchman was unable to score the opening goal for Admian.
Vanzer misses a penalty, Vanaken scores
Both teams had already used up plenty of fuel reserves before the break, and the second half got off to a rough start. Just before the hour, Duden Park exploded when Lazare was gently tapped by Mechele. The ball is gone right away.
Dante Vanzier had hoped to give Union the lead, but succumbed to the pressure. The striker at lightning speed saw his attempt go away from the post, a large damper for the home team.
And Klopp eagerly took advantage of it. Substitute Skov Olsen found Vanaken’s next header 15 minutes from the end, which left Maurice without a chance: 0-1.
The tired Al Ittihad had no more chances and in the final, young substitute Noosa decided the match. Club Brugge will jump to the top of the Champions League qualifiers, but Al Ittihad will already have a chance of revenge at Jan Breedel Stadium on Wednesday.
Undav: ‘The pressure on Wednesday is huge now’
Vanaken: “The loss of the penalty crept into their heads and gave us a boost”
Labusin: “We will remember the positive and try to correct it in the next match”
Nielsen: “Very disappointed, but we have to look forward”
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