Polissya lost to Copenhagen and dropped out of the Conference League
The second leg match of the 2nd qualifying round of the Conference League took place, where "Copenhagen" and "Polissya" met. The first duel of the opponents ended in a high-scoring draw with a score of 3:3, leaving many questions about the winner of the confrontation.
Prior to the match, an unpleasant situation occurred for the Zhytomyr team. During warm-up, center-back Sarapiy got injured, and he was replaced by Maisuradze in the starting lineup of the "wolves".
The match started not as expected by the "Copenhagen" fans gathered at the "Parken". Zhytomyr players dominated possession and immediately engaged in aggressive interceptions after losing the ball. The home team did not even approach the penalty area of "Polissya" in the first ten minutes of the game, focusing on defense.
However, despite their territorial advantage, the "wolves" could not convert it into scoring opportunities. The guests actively tried to use the flanks, but their passes into the penalty area of "Copenhagen" lacked sharpness.
Conceding a goal in their own net from such gameplay was very painful, and it happened in this match. Robert dealt with Maisuradze in the corner of "Polissya's" penalty area, who brought down the opponent with a reckless tackle. El Yunussi converted the penalty with a cool finish.
To be frank, this episode was very disappointing, but the attacking potential of Zhytomyr allowed hope for a favorable outcome of the confrontation. This hope increased even more when Suzuki received a red card for a foul on Krasnopyry immediately after the break. Now let's see how we play...
Being in numerical superiority, the "wolves" seemed confused. Their attacks looked clueless, as they struggled to figure out how to get the ball into the penalty area. They attempted long-range shots, with Andrade's shot, handled by Kotarski, being the only notable one.
Then the guests even managed to launch a counterattack. After a long pass from El Yunussi, Madsen escaped from Bragaru and rolled the ball to Robert, who only had to hit it into the empty net.
Trying to influence the course of the game, the "Polissya" coaching staff fielded all attacking players: Krasnopyry, Hayduchik, Filipov, Bragaru, Veleten were all on the field at the same time. However, quantity did not translate into quality. The "Lions" felt confident and effortlessly thwarted the attacks of the Zhytomyr team.
At the end of the match, Krasnopyry could have brought back the intrigue, but his turnaround shot from the goalkeeper's area missed the target. And Krushynskyi's goal came too late: a few seconds later, the final whistle sounded.
"Polissya" exits the Conference League qualification and will start in the new UPL season next Sunday.
"Copenhagen" - "Polissya" - 2:1. First match - 3:3.
Goals: El Yunussi (27, penalty), Robert (61) - Krushynskyi (90+3)
Yellow cards: Delaney (66) - Nazarenko (30)
Red card: Suzuki (47, rough play)
"Copenhagen": Kotarski, Krol, Baimo, Suzuki, Lopez, Delaney (Meling, 77), Clem (Garananga, 53), Robert (Larsson, 88), El Yunussi, Madsen, Cornelius.
"Polissya": Bushchan, Krushynskyi, Maisuradze (Veleten, 74), Chobotenko, Mykhailichenko, Fedor (Hayduchik, 69), Babenko (Filipov, 69), Andriievskyi (Emerlakhu, 57), Nazarenko (Bragaru, 57), Krasnopyry, Andrade.
