The first three return matches of the Champions League playoffs took place on Tuesday evening, with Hapoel Beer Sheva facing a dramatic turn of events. The Israeli team was just seconds away from securing qualification after leading throughout the match but ultimately fell short in extra time against Sabah Baku. The loss means Hapoel Beer Sheva will now compete in the Europa League.
In the earlier match on Tuesday, Sabah Baku (Azerbaijan) took on Hapoel Beer Sheva (Israel), with Romanian referee Istvan Kovacs overseeing the game. In the first leg, Hapoel Beer Sheva had secured a 2-1 victory in Romania, giving them a slight advantage going into the return leg.
During the match in Baku, Hapoel Beer Sheva led 1-0 and later 2-1, which would have secured their progression. However, the game took a dramatic turn in the last moments when Mutallimov equalized for Sabah Baku in the 90+4th minute, sending the match into extra time.
With an extra man on the field, Sabah Baku capitalized on their advantage, scoring two more goals to win 5-2 on the night and 6-4 on aggregate, leaving Hapoel Beer Sheva devastated.
If Hapoel Beer Sheva had advanced to the Champions League group stage, they would have played home matches in Romania, potentially against some of Europe’s giants. Nevertheless, they will continue their European campaign in the Europa League, also based in Bucharest.
Meanwhile, the other matches featured Bodo/Glimt versus Nijmegen and LASK Linz against Celtic, both of which had favorable positions for the home teams after their first leg victories.
FINAL » Sabah Baku – Hapoel Beer Sheva 5-2 (6-4 on aggregate)
Goals: Nwachukwu 38, Rakhmonaliyev 74, Mutallimov 90+4, Mbina 101, Mickels 115 / Zlatanovic 10, Mizrahi 61
Broadcasting: Prima Sport 1, Digi Sport 2
Hapoel Beer Sheva’s Zlatanovic opened the scoring in the 3rd minute, but the goal was disallowed by VAR for offside.
Diop received a second yellow card in the 100th minute, leaving Hapoel Beer Sheva to finish the match with ten men. Peretz received a red card in the 116th minute.
Sabah Baku: Pokatilov – Solvet, Zedadka, Dashdamirov, Puchacz – Rakhmonaliev, Simic, Lepinjica – Parris, Mickels, Nwachukwu. Coach: Valdas Dambrauskas
Hapoel Beer Sheva: Marciano – Mizrahi, Miguel Vitor, Rotman, P. Amador – Yehoshuha, Ventura, E. Peretz – East, Zlatanovic, Ahmad. Coach: Ran Kozuch
LIVE » Bodo/Glimt – Nijmegen 2-0 (5-1 on aggregate)
Goals: Bjorkan 45+2, Auklend 45+6
Broadcasting: Digi Sport 2
Nijmegen’s goalkeeper Crettaz received a direct red card in the 4th minute.
LIVE » LASK Linz – Celtic 1-1 (1-4 on aggregate)
Goals: Usor 32 / Tierney 21
Broadcasting: Prima Sport 1, Digi Sport 1
LASK Linz: Jungwirth – Mbuyamba, Tornich, Andrade – Jorgensen, Ljubicic, Bogarde, Horvarth, Bello – Usor, Adeniran. Coach: Dietmar Kuhbauer
Celtic: Sinisalo – Tierney, Trusty, Carter-Vickers, Donovan – Baur, Nygren, McGregor – Hyunjun Yang, Hogh, Duran. Coach: Martin O’Neill
Upcoming Matches in the Champions League Playoffs
AEK Athens – Levski Sofia
Celje – Slovan Bratislava
Lyon – Fenerbahce
Viking – Dinamo Zagreb
Teams Already Qualified for the Champions League Group Stage
England: Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Liverpool;
Spain: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Villarreal, Real Betis;
Italy: Inter Milan, Napoli, AS Roma, Como;
Germany: Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, VfB Stuttgart;
France: Paris Saint-Germain, RC Lens, LOSC Lille;
Netherlands: PSV Eindhoven, Feyenoord;
Portugal: FC Porto, Sporting CP;
Others: Club Brugge (Belgium), Galatasaray (Turkey), Shakhtar Donetsk (Ukraine), Slavia Prague (Czech Republic).
