Standout Stats: Alba does his best Messi impression, horror show in Kilmarnock
They're enjoying a short summer in the Faroe Islands, and a league match between Klaksvik and Fuglafjordur there suggested that even in this far-flung destination, it's sometimes worth flying in for football.
The hosts, who last season became the first-ever club from the country to reach the main stage of a European competition in the Conference League, outshot their opponents by an unprecedented 44 to four! However, their finishing was poor and 28 shots missed the target.
Interestingly, the visitors - the team sitting bottom of the league - led after the first half and the opening stages were more or less even. It was only a penalty that changed everything, after which the game turned into a completely one-sided affair and the favourites turned things around. It took 29 attempts to do so and in the end, they won 2-1.
Even more entertaining was the Norwegian league clash between Levanger and league leaders Valerenga. The five-time national champions (who last won it in 2005) confirmed with a 4-1 win that they're heading back to the elite, but it was not as easy as the result suggests. The spectators witnessed a whopping 40 shots on target, 26 of them from the winning side. The second half was literally a shootout with a ratio of 11 to 12 accurate efforts.
Rio Ave, on the other hand, could do nothing at all at the FC Porto stadium. The home side were clearly in control of the match, asserting themselves after just 18 seconds and not allowing their opponent a single shot on goal, besides a blocked one, the entire match. The visitors only got the ball over the halfway line 17 times.
The fact that an early lead does not automatically mean success was shown in another match in Portugal, where Oliveirense were 3-0 up after nine minutes against Penafiel, the second-placed team in the second division. In the next nine minutes, it became 3-2 and the home side ultimately went 4-3 ahead in the 71st minute and held on to win.
The bombardment of the month was performed by the players of the Mongolian team Khaan Khuns-Erchim. Historically the country's most successful club, they have dominated its top division, which has only been played 10 times since 1996. However, they finished seventh in the 10-team table last season, but have hinted at a return to the top in the opening round of the new season. Visitors Tuv Azarganuud were blanked 14-0, with Kou Gotou, one of the Japanese legionnaires in the side, netting seven goals.
No player has had a bigger scoring explosion in the top competitions in August. However, Jordi Alba's performance in the Inter Miami vs Toronto game deserves special admiration. The former Barcelona mainstay assisted all the goals in the 4-3 win, filling in perfectly for injured teammate Lionel Messi. At the back, however, it was not perfect from Alba and he therefore missed out on a perfect 10 in Flashscore's ratings.
This was earned by less than eleven footballers in August, including Nigerian striker Peter Olayinka in the colours of Crvena Zvezda of Belgrade. He scored twice in the first half at Cukaricki but the coach decided to spare him at the break.
On the other hand, Scottish Kilmarnock defender Joe Wright (2.2) got the worst rating of all. In a clash with St. Johnstone, he received a yellow card in the second minute, saw his team concede in the third minute, and after a quarter of an hour he received a second yellow for a foul and that was the end of his match. Kilmarnock then lost 3-0.
His performance might have made him a good fit for Slask Wroclaw. In the second leg of the penultimate qualifying round of the Conference League, the Polish side deployed all possible weapons to succeed against St. Gallen. After losing 2-0 in the first leg in Switzerland, they turned things around with three goals in the final six minutes of the first half (the team's only three shots on target of the game) and were on their way to forcing at least extra time. However, their own indiscipline robbed them of it.
Not only did they rack up nine yellow cards but also added three reds, and in the 12th minute of stoppage time, Spaniard Matias Nahuel even gave away a penalty. After a long delay, the visitors scored from it and all hope was lost.