Conference League roundup: Fiorentina through, AZ down Anderlecht on penalties
Fiorentina 2 Lech Poznan 3
Lech Poznan gave Fiorentina a huge fright before eventually bowing out of the UEFA Europa Conference League in heroic fashion, after a 3-2 victory in Italy which saw La Viola secure their third-ever European semi-final, via a 6-4 aggregate win.
The Polish outfit were trailing 4-1 from the first leg of their quarter-final tie, but made the perfect start to their European remake of ‘Mission Impossible’, as Afonso Sousa’s first-time shot found the top corner after just nine minutes.
Meanwhile, Vincenzo Italiano’s side were left incensed at the other end, when what looked like an elbow on Nicolas Gonzalez in the penalty area went unpunished.
It was a bad-tempered affair, with both teams picking up a couple of yellow cards before halftime, and the fragmented nature of the game did not suit Fiorentina, who struggled to find any kind of attacking rhythm.
That said, Luka Jovic did have one chance, but headed wide from close range, while Antonin Barak clattered over the bar from 20 yards.
La Viola should have levelled after the break, only for Jovic to fire straight at the ‘keeper from close range, and he was made to pay for that miss just minutes later.
A sloppy tackle by substitute Aleksa Terzic on Michal Skoras led to a penalty after a long VAR review, with the spot-kick duly dispatched by Kristoffer Velde, as the travelling Poznan faithful finally started to smell the unlikeliest of UEFA competition semi-finals – a first in 31 years.
Fiorentina were on the ropes by now, while John van den Brom’s side had the bit between their teeth, and unbelievably they made it 4-4 on aggregate through Artur Sobiech, who tapped Jesper Karlstrom’s cross into an empty net.
The hosts still had a final trick up their sleeve though, retaking the overall lead when Riccardo Sottil wonderfully volleyed home from inside the box.
That should have been enough to knock the stuffing out of Poznan, but they continued to desperately surge forward in hope of taking the tie to extra time.
However, Fiorentina put their challenge to bed once and for all when Gaetano Castrovilli netted in injury time, ensuring that they reached the last four of a European competition for the first time since the 2015 Europa League.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Kristoffer Velde (Lech Poznan)
AZ Alkmaar 2 Anderlecht 0 (4-1 pen.)
AZ Alkmaar progressed to the semi-finals of the Conference League after a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Anderlecht.
Goalkeeper Mathew Ryan was the hero, saving two spot-kicks as the Dutch side advanced to the last four of a European competition for the first time since 2005.
AZ had failed to recover from a first-leg defeat to win a UEFA knockout tie for 16 years prior to tonight, but they made the perfect start to put that record right.
After a long and tense VAR review, Michael Murillo was adjudged to have brought down Milos Kerkez just inside the area. Greek international Vangelis Pavilidis made no mistake from the penalty spot, firing in off the post to bring the tie to life.
Not satisfied with the solitary goal, Pavilidis astonishingly doubled his tally, and subsequently levelled the tie on aggregate only nine minutes later, as the in-form striker clinically steered Jens Odgaard’s pinpoint delivery into an empty net.
Anderlecht had been blown away and were visibly shellshocked, while they failed to muster any threat to the AZ goal, rendering goalkeeper Mathew Ryan a mere spectator in the first half.
With the momentum firmly in their stride following a sensational performance in the first half, AZ were dealt a significant blow at halftime in their pursuit of the semi-finals as goalscoring hero Pavilidis failed to emerge for the start of the second 45 minutes after injuring his ankle in a clash with Jan Vertonghen.
Losing their talisman seemed to suck the life out of the hosts in the second period, with the visitors finally testing Ryan at the other end through Moussa N’Diaye, who forced the Australian into a smart save at his near post.
Significant opportunities were at a premium, but AZ almost struck gold in the closing stages when Kerkez unleashed a venomous strike that cannoned back off the post, with a stranded Bart Verbruggen rooted to the spot. That would be as close an opportunity either side would get within the 90 minutes, leaving extra time looming.
As can often be the case, the additional 30 minutes were a tired affair. Little excitement ensued, although AZ thought they'd won it after Odgaard's smart finish at the near post, only for his strike to be ruled out for offside.
The cruel decider of a penalty shootout followed, and Anderlecht would blink first as captain Vertonghen saw his spot-kick brilliantly saved by Ryan. The Australian proved decisive again from Anderlecht's third penalty, leaping to his right to deny Killian Sardella before Mexx Meerdink rifled home the winning effort from 12 yards as AZ's perfect shootout sent them into the semi-finals.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Mathew Ryan (AZ Alkmaar)