OK, that’s about us. Thanks for your company, and enjoy the rest of your night. Ta-ra.
But Celtic are not.
Leicester, meanwhile, are doing alright.
It appears that Spurs are still Spurs.
Here’s our Arsenal report....
Results from the earlier games
- G: AEK Athens 1-2 Leicester City; Zorya Luhansk 1-2 Sporting Braga
- H: Lille 2-2 Celtic; Milan 3-0 Sparta Prague
- I: Qarabag 1-3 Villarreal; Sivasspor 1-2 Maccabi Tel-Aviv
- J: LASK 4-3 Ludogorets; Antwerp 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur
- K: CSKA Moscow 0-0 Dinamo Zagreb; Feyenoord 1-4 RZ Pellets
- L: Red Star Belgrade 5-1 Slovan Liberec; Gent 1-4 Hoffenheim
Tonight's results
- A: Cluj 1-1 Young Boys; Roma 0-0 Sofia
- B: Arsenal 3-0 Dundalk; Molde 1-0 Rapid Vienna
- C: Nice 1-0 Hapoel Be’er Sheva; Slavia Prague 1-0 Bayer Leverkusen
- D: Benfica 3-0 Standard Liege; Rangers 1-0 Lech Poznan
- E: Granada 0-0 PAOK Salonika; Omonia Nicosia 1-2 PSV Eindhoven
- F: AZ Alkmaar 2-0 HNK Rijeka; Real Sociedad 0-1 Napoli
Full-time: Arsenal 3-0 Dundalk
Arsenal move to the top of Group B with two wins from two; Molde have done likewise, but with a less good goal difference.
Updated
Full-time: Rangers 1-0 Lech Poznan
That’s a good result for the Bears. They sit second in Group D behind Benfica, who have also won both games, but with a better goal difference.
Updated
“As a Dundalk fan I know that it’s a really one-sided game at this stage,” emails Eoin Keenan, “but believe me, this is a superb performance by Dundalk given all the circumstances. I was at Anfield with my father in 1969 when Dundalk were beaten 10-0 in the old Inter-City Fairs Cup. It was Ray Clemence’s first European game replacing Tommy Lawrence. Over subsequent years Dundalk have had great performances against Spurs, Celtic, PSV, to name just a few. Well done tonight the Town!”
Great stuff. We’re a bit late for this, but what’s the biggest kicking you’ve seen your team take? I watched Man United lose 4-0 to MK Dons.
Ey up, yer da’s discovered the internet.
Mourinho’s Instagram > pic.twitter.com/84moh7L55V
— TC. (@totalcristiano) October 29, 2020
Good work from Ryan Jack inside his own box, insinuating himself into a challenge just as space looked to be opening up for Poznan.
At Ibrox, Rangers are expending time pretty comfortably.
I’ve been handed some hospital balls in my professional life, but BT’s commentators have been told to peddle Wolves v Palace and Burnley v Chelsea for 15 sheets apiece.
They’ve had an hour against 10 men, but Slavia Prague have finally taken the lead against Leverkusen, Peter Olayinka with the goal.
Arsenal have slowed down now. Dundalk are still struggling to get out of their own half, but they don’t look especially like conceding again.
At Ibrox, Poznan are starting to press a little bit.
Nice from Nelson, driving through the middle of the pitch with stepovers and sways. When I first saw him, I thought he might be first-team material, and I still think that he’s a squad player at worst. But I wonder if Arsenal will end up selling him to generate funds.
Sandro Kulenovic has hauled Rijeka back into things at AZ. They now trail 4-1.
Nice from Willock, absolutely diddling his man with a feet and bodyswerve combo - he’s been excellent tonight. But Nketiah can’t convert his cut-back and then Arteta makes two changes, introducing Tierney and Balogun for Xhaka and Nketiah.
Updated
OH MY DAYS!
STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) October 29, 2020
Keemar Roofe, is that you!? 🧐
Omonia Nicosia's Jordi Gómez has just done this... pic.twitter.com/F5mAYRNF6J
Ohi Omoijuanfo has put Molde 1-0 up against Rapid Wien.
Two goal in seven minutes in Romania, where Mario Rondon put Cluj ahead, only for Christian Fassnacht to equalise for Young Boys.
When I pondered Arsenal earlier today, I hoped to see Emile Smith-Rowe play. I’m not sure why he isn’t – surely his team could absorb any bad game he might have?
Luca Waldschmidt has scored a penalty to put Benfica 2-0 up against Standard Liege.
GOAL! Rangers 1-0 Lech Poznan (Morelos 68)
Barisic earns himself a yard, with a bum touch I think, and swings over another belter of a cross upon which Morelos sticks the absolute nut. That’s 21 European goals for him, same as Ally McCoist.
Updated
And what of Willian. I know he was free, but even so I was surprised Arsenal bought him. By the time they’re properly good again, Willian is even further past his best, and he’s always been inconsistent, which is the last thing they need.
Arsenal’s back three: Elneny, Xhaka, Kolasinac. Absolutely incredible scenes.
Elneny has taken Mustafi’s place in Arsenal’s back three.
Albert Gudmundsson has scored his second of the night and AZ now lead Rijeka 4-0.
Meanwhile at Ibrox, Morelos has replaced Roofe.
Arsenal bring Ceballos and Willian on for Mustafi and Pepe. Is Mustafi being saved for Old Trafford on Sunday?
Loan watch: Diogo Dalot scored Milan’s crucial third goal in their 3-0 win over Sparta Prague earlier this evening. He’s got a fair bit of ability and would be a decent buy for them.
Matteo Politano has put Napoli ahead away to Real Sociedad.
Arsenal are looking for more goals and moving the ball quicker. If they score again in the next 10 minutes, this could get seriously messy.
Rangers are struggling away against Poznan, and I’d expect to see attacking changes pretty soon.
Jesper Karlsson has put AZ 3-0 up against Rijeka. That will surely be that.
“The ‘only pros in the technical area’ rule is utter rubbish,” fumes Peter Oh. “I’m certain that Giovagnoli’s skills at playing invisible accordions, pointing in all directions, shouting cliches and clapping in the enthusiastic manner are up to professional standards.”
Maybe his gum-chewing needs work.
I know that this is mainly Arsenal reserves, but they could really use a comfortable win tonight. The Artetish feelgood factor has dissipated in recent weeks because his team are struggling to create so struggling to entertain, and when results aren’t going well, that doesn’t make for a good mix.
A penalty from Pizzi has put Benfica in front against Standard Liege.
“Who’s in charge of VAR for European games?” wonders Malc Shuttleworth. “Is it neutral officers or that usual shower who have been messing things up all year? Just wondering.....”
It depends what you mean. I’m sure Uefa are involved in inflicting the whole nonsense upon us, but in terms of whose administering the minutiae of things, I assume it’s their officials rather the Premeer League’s.
WHAT A GOAL! Arsenal 3-0 Dundalk (Pepe 46)
Arsenal work the ball across the edge of the box and Pepe rolls studs over it to conjure a shooting lane, then with very little backlift, jabs a 20-yarder high into the net! With his right foot! He’s such a strange player!
Updated
Aaaaand off we go again...
Back come the players....
I’ll be back in a few. In the meantime...
Half-time scores
- A: Cluj 0-0 Young Boys; Roma 0-0 Sofia
- B: Arsenal 2-0 Dundalk; Molde 0-0 Rapid Vienna
- C: Nice 1-0 Hapoel Be’er Sheva; Slavia Prague 0-0 Bayer Leverkusen
- D: Benfica 0-0 Standard Liege; Rangers 0-0 Lech Poznan
- E: Granada 0-0 PAOK Salonika; Omonia Nicosia 1-1 PSV Eindhoven
- F: AZ Alkmaar 2-0 HNK Rijeka; Real Sociedad 0-0 Napoli
Donyell Malen has equalised for PSV against Omonia.
GOAL! Arsenal 2-0 Dundalk (Willock 44)
Sweetheart, you’re so cruel! Nketiah sweeps a pass to Pepe, on the edge of the box, and he should move it one more but instead shoots into the nearest shins. The ball, though, has its own ideas, taking itself to where it should’ve gone, and Willock, who’s been the best player on the pitch by far, takes a touch, adjust his feet, opens his body, and roofs his finish past keeper and defender on the line.
Updated
“The whole David vs Goliath narrative is probably in danger of being overused for Arsenal Dundalk,” says Frank Bredin, “but using Dundalk’s 2018 accounts as a guide and commonly-quoted press figures, then Mesut Ozil is paid the equivalent of Dundalk’s entire squad’s salaries for the year every three weeks. Dundalk’s accounts are on their website. I’m no financial specialist and only ever heard tell of Swiss Ramble. Some of Dundalk’s better paid players may be just about on the same income as Gunnersaurus was?”
Well yes, better players tend to earn more than worse players.
GOAL! Arsenal 1-0 Dundalk (Nketiah 42)
He doesn’t miss this time! Rogers comes for a corner, tries to punch, and the ball grazes his knuckles, cannons a defender, and drops for the arch predator to force home.
Updated
But here he is, lashing a shot that hits a defender ... and falls to Nketiah! But though he stretches a leg, he can’t control his finish because it comes to him so fast, and the ball flies wide.
Updated
“In the Arsenal match, Pepe has got a very intriguing policy,” emails Charles Antaki, “playing so badly as to reduce his monetary value by about half, immediately lightening the burden of being a £72m footballer. Unfortunately he seems to have somewhat miscalibrated, and looks to be about worth about thruppence at the moment.”
That was a deal that absolutely reeked of nonsense when they did it. Twenty-four years old, one proper good season, playing for the second-best team in league that isn’t especially strong, unable to get into his national side and no competition to buy him. Er, OK then.
Dundalk are closing down Arsenal’s space pretty well, and Arsenal don’t have much ingenuity even in their first team. But Willock’s doing his best, attacking the line and standing up a cross that Kolasinac attacks, forcing Rogers to tip over the top.
There’s shock potential in Cyprus where Omonia have taken the lead against PSV, Jordi Gomez – of Wigan fame – with the goal.
At Ibrox, Poznan look pretty comfortable, and at Arsenal, so do Dundalk.
At Ibrox,Barisic swings over a fine cross and Roofe is up – this is a chance! – but he heads directly down. So the ball bounces up for him, and he tries a hopeful overhead when Kent, behind him, was well-placed to have a proper dig.
It’s goalabout! Amine Gouiri has put Nice ahead against Hapoel Beer-Sheva.
Arsenal are getting closer. Elneny finds himself on the ball in the and lays back to Nelson, who lamps a low one that flashes past the post.
Albert Gudmundsson has added a second for AZ against Rijeka.
In Prague and against Slavia, Leverkusen have had Karim Bellarabi sent off.
22' | 🔴 Straight red card for Bayer #38 Bellarabi for a slide tackle on Provod!
— SK Slavia Prague EN (@slavia_eng) October 29, 2020
🔴⚪️ 0-0 ⚫️🔴 #slab04 #UEL
Updated
Arsenal are turning it up. Gently – almost imperceptibly – but nevertheless.
That Koopermans goal is is the only one we’ve seen in the first 20 minutes of these second games.
Nice from Arsenal, Willock dashing in behind to take a diagonal pass slid along the carpet by Pepe. He crosses low and well, but there’s no one to get on the end of it.
Dundalk’s manager, Filippo Giovagnoli, isn’t allowed in the technical area because he doesn’t have pro coaching licence. Glad to see the important stuff is all being taken of.
Leicester are running into decent touch.
The ball drops on the touchline and Gerrard controls, sweeping it behind his standing foot with one velveteen touch. Bet he was a useful player in his day.
Joe Willock, then. I really, really enjoy his energy, ball-carrying and desire to run past the strikers. But are his passing and touch good enough for him to make it as an Arsenal midfielder?
Pepe forages down the right and looks for Willock, but a defensive foot intervenes and the ball sits up for Cedric, who wellies an effort high and wide.
For example.
Another game, another goal 🔥
— Arsenal Academy (@ArsenalAcademy) February 18, 2020
👏 @fbalogun67 pic.twitter.com/ZTK18MXysk
At Ibrox, Rangers are knocking at the door, Kamara jinking about on the edge of the box and finding Kent, whose fine cross is shanked behind for a corner which comes to nowt.
In Alkmaar, Teun Koopmeiners has put AZ ahead against Rijeka. He plays as a 6, but is meant to be a really good player already.
Runarsson, making his Arsenal debut, has to scramble down by his near post to save McEleney’s shot from range. Decent effort, and a decent idea to try something before he’s had a chance to get used to things.
There’s some strange activity going on in this Arsenal team. They’re playing five at the back, and I think Xahaka is involved there. Perhaps most interesting is the presence of Folarin Balogun on the bench – he looks a real prospect, but until now, a real prospect planning to leave the club. I hope he gets on.
Off we go at Ibrox and the Emirates.
Updated
Further team news...
Arsenal: Runarsson, Cedric, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Maitland-Niles, Willock, Elneny, Xhaka, Pepe, Nketiah, Nelson. Subs: Leno, Hein, Bellerin, Tierney, Gabriel, Saka, Ceballos, Lacazette, Willian, Aubameyang, Partey, Balogun.
Dundalk: Rogers, Gartland, Boyle, Cleary, Mountney, Murray, Shields, McEleney, Dummigan, Hoban, Duffy. Subs: McCarey, Corcoran, Gannon, Hoare, Flores, Sloggett, Leahy, Oduwa, Colovic, Kelly, McMillan.
Team news....
Rangers: McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Balogun, Barisic, Davis, Kamara, Arfield, Hagi, Kent, Roofe. Subs: McLaughlin, Bassey, Helander, Jack, Itten, Zungu, Patterson, Aribo, Morelos, Barker, Stewart, Barjonas.
Lech Poznan: Bednarek, Czerwinski, Satka, Rogne, Kravets, Skoras, Moder, Marchwinski, Puchacz, Ramirez, Ishak. Subs: Malencia, Muhar, Sykora, Dejwski, Kacharava, Awwad, Klups.
Thanks Scott and evening all. For your delectation we have:
- A: Cluj v Young Boys; Roma v Sofia
- B: Arsenal v Dundalk; Molde v Rapid Vienna
- C: Nice v Hapoel Be’er Sheva; Slavia Prague v Bayer Leverkusen
- D: Benfica v Standard Liege; Rangers v Lech Poznan
- E: Granada v PAOK Salonika; Omonia Nicosia v PSV Eindhoven
- F: AZ Alkmaar v HNK Rijeka; Real Sociedad v Napoli
And with that, I’m off. Daniel Harris, in hot form after penning the feelgood hit of the autumn yesterday, will take you through the 8pm kick-offs!
Results of the 5.55pm kick-offs
- G: AEK Athens 1-2 Leicester City; Zorya Luhansk 1-2 Sporting Braga
- H: Lille 2-2 Celtic; Milan 3-0 Sparta Prague
- I: Qarabag 1-3 Villarreal; Sivasspor 1-2 Maccabi Tel-Aviv
- J: LASK 4-3 Ludogorets; Antwerp 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur
- K: CSKA Moscow 0-0 Dinamo Zagreb; Feyenoord 1-4 RZ Pellets
- L: Red Star Belgrade 5-1 Slovan Liberec; Gent 1-4 Hoffenheim
FULL TIME: AEK 1-2 Leicester City
The Foxes keep pace with Braga at the top of Group G. Maximum points for Brendan Rodgers’ men.
FULL TIME: Lille 2-2 Celtic
A first half to rebuild confidence for stuttering Celtic; a second period to knock it all back down again.
FULL TIME: Antwerp 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur
A tedious display and a limp defeat for Spurs. Antwerp go top of Group J.
Updated
Lucas Moura has a belt from distance with 120 seconds of bonus time remaining. It’s miles over.
It’s just not happening for Spurs. With seconds of regulation time remaining, Kane turns neatly by the right-hand side of the Antwerp D. He can’t get a shot away. Neither can Son. The ball’s crossed towards Lamela at the far post, but the winger can’t bring the ball under control before running it out for a goal kick. Still five minutes of added time to save themselves.
With a couple of minutes remaining, Harry Winks goes on a rococo dribble down the inside-left channel. It’s a fine run, spoilt slightly when he leans back and wafts over the bar from the edge of the box.
Tottenham continue to toil in a most ineffective manner in Antwerp. Meanwhile Paco Alcacer puts Villarreal 2-1 up at Karabakh on 84 minutes.
Precious little happening right now in the Spurs, Leicester and Celtic games. But it suddenly comes to life in the Karabakh-Villarreal tie, Owusu Kwabena putting the hosts in front on 78, Yeremi Pinto levelling up two minutes later. And Maccabi Tel-Aviv go 2-1 at Sivasspor thanks to Dor Peretz’s 74th-minute effort.
Elvis Manu completes a hat-trick, and suddenly it’s LASK 4-3 Ludogorets. AC Milan are now 3-0 up over Sparta Prague, Diogo Dalot with a 66th-minute strike. A quick two-goal salvo from Aleksandar Katai has put Red Star Belgrade 5-1 up against Liberec. And Dan Biton’s 68th-minute penalty levels things at 1-1 for Maccabi Tel-Aviv at Sivasspor.
Celtic have developed a glass jaw. They nearly concede a third, Lille instigating a game of pinball in the box. Bain is forced to claw one out from under his bar. The Scottish champions, facing a fourth consecutive match without a win, look so short of confidence again. And after a such a fine first-half performance, too. Meanwhile there another goal for Ludogorets’ Elvis Manu. He makes it LASK 4-2 Ludogorets on 67 minutes. And a 66th-minute Dejan Joveljic penalty stretches Wolfsberger’s lead against Feyenoord further: it’s 1-4.
GOAL! Lille 2-2 Celtic (Ikone 77)
Lille press forward. Celtic fail to clear their lines. Yusuf Yazici mis-kicks on the edge of the box. The ball breaks to Jonathan Ikoné, who aims for the bottom left. The ball takes a deflection and beats the wrong-footed Scott Bain, flying into the bottom right.
Updated
Simen Juklerod misses a huge chance for Antwerp, sent clear with Davinson Sanchez away on his holidays. One on one with Hugo Lloris, he blooters wildly over the bar. Harry Kane nearly immediately punishes him, threatening to tear clear down the inside-right channel but slipping over instead. It could be 1-1; it could be 2-0. Time’s running out for Spurs with just over 15 munutes plus stoppages to go.
Rangers: McGregor, Tavernier, Goldson, Balogun, Barisic, Kamara, Davis, Arfield, Hagi, Roofe, Kent.
Subs: Ughelumba, Helander, Jack, Itten, Zungu, Patterson, Aribo, Morelos, Barker, Stewart, McLaughlin, Barjonas.
Lech Poznan: Bednarek, Czerwinski, Satka, Rogne, Kravets, Skoras, Moder, Marchwinski, Puchacz, Ramirez, Ishak.
Subs: Muhar, Sykora, Dejewski, Kacharava, Awad, Malenica, Klups.
GOAL! Lille 1-2 Celtic (Zeki Celik 67)
The game’s back on in France, where Celtic fail to clear a corner from the left, allowing Lille defender Zeki Celik to bundle in at the far post.
So much for the Feyenoord comeback. Michael Liendl completes his hat-trick for Wolfsberger on the hour; it’s 1-3. Sivasspor go 1-0 up against Maccabi Tel-Aviv, Olarenwaju Kayode with the 55th-minute deadlock-breaker. And in Celtic’s group, AC Milan go 2-0 up on Sparta Prague, Rafael Leao with the latest one on 57 minutes.
Spurs improve a little, Lamela slipping a ball down the right for Moura, who returns it into the middle for Son. The in-form striker uncharacteristically hoicks wide right. Then Aurier rattles down the right and curls in powerfully. Lamela attempts the full Keith Houchen (sorry for raking over old coals, Spurs fans of a certain vintage) but doesn’t connect. That would have been a spectacular one.
Spurs haven’t troubled Antwerp in the opening exchanges of the second half, despite all those changes. So on comes the one-man cavalry in the shape of Harry Kane, who takes the place of a quiet Gareth Bale. Meanwhile Steven Berghuis pulls one back for Feyenoord on 53 minutes; it’s Feyenoord 1-2 Wolfsberger.
Elsewhere ... Florian Grillitsch puts Hoffenheim 2-0 up at Gent, while Red Star go 3-1 up on Liberec, Milan Gajic with a 50th minute goal. And in France, Kristoffer Ajer is indeed unable to continue. He trudges off grimly, almost certainly out of the Scottish Cup semi-final with Aberdeen at the weekend. Nir Bitton returns in his stead. Not a bad replacement, huh.
GOAL! AEK Athens 1-2 Leicester (Tankovic 49)
A simple scoop down the middle of the park exposes the Leicester defence and springs Muamer Tankovic clear. He strides into the box and lashes past Kasper Schmeichel. Game on.
Jose Mourinho isn’t the sort of guy who’ll die wondering. Incensed with his Spurs team’s insipid first-half performance, he’s made four half-time changes, bringing on Son Heung-min, Erik Lamela, Lucas Moura and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg for Vinicius, Alli, Bergiwjn and Lo Celso.
Updated
Lille have started the second half pushing Celtic back a bit. A couple of loose clearances giving the hosts hope. But they’re not capitalising, the final ball lacking. Another slight worry here: Kristoffer Ajer has gone down holding his groin, and by the looks of it won’t be able to continue.
Arsenal: Runarsson, Cedric, Mustafi, Kolasinac, Maitland-Niles, Willock, Elneny, Xhaka, Nelson, Nketiah, Pepe.
Subs: Leno, Bellerin, Tierney, Gabriel, Saka, Ceballos, Lacazette, Willian, Aubameyang, Thomas, Hein, Balogun.
Dundalk: Rogers, Gartland, Boyle, Daniel Cleary, Mountney, Murray, Shields, McEleney, Dummigan, Hoban, Duffy.
Subs: Corcoran, Gannon, Hoare, Flores, Sloggett, Leahy, Oduwa, McCarey, Colovic, Kelly, McMillan.
Arsenal give a debut to goalkeeper Alex Runarsson, as Mikel Arteta changes his entire starting XI from the weekend defeat to Leicester.
Granit Xhaka captains, while Eddie Nketiah leads the attack. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette are on the bench, just in case.
The second halves of the 5.55pm kick-offs are starting all over Europe. Meanwhile team news for the 8pm matches trickles through ...
Half-time entertainment. For your listening pleasure.
The half-times in the early kick-offs
- G: AEK Athens 0-2 Leicester City; Zorya Luhansk 0-2 Sporting Braga
- H: Lille 0-2 Celtic; Milan 1-0 Sparta Prague
- I: Qarabag 0-0 Villarreal; Sivasspor 0-0 Maccabi Tel-Aviv
- J: LASK 3-1 Ludogorets; Antwerp 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur
- K: CSKA Moscow 0-0 Dinamo Zagreb; Feyenoord 0-2 RZ Pellets
- L: Red Star Belgrade v Slovan Liberec; Gent 0-1 Hoffenheim
Jan Matousek halves the deficit in the Marakana. It’s Red Star Belgrade 2-1 Liberec after 41 minutes.
GOAL! AEK Athens 0 Leicester 2 (Choudhury 39)
Leicester double their lead at a corner. James Maddison swings the set piece long from the right. The ball drops to the unmarked Hamza Choudhury, who takes a touch and lashes home from an angle on the left!
Updated
Scott Bain saves the penalty and gets Shane Duffy out of jail! Jonathan David gets up and takes the penalty himself. He sends it low and hard to the right ... but Bain sticks out a boot to deny the Lille striker. It’s still Lille 0-2 Celtic!
Tottenham haven’t responded to falling behind at all. A half-hearted run by Gareth Bale down the left leads to nought. Meanwhile in France, it’s a penalty to Lille, the increasingly hapless Shane Duffy needlessly clipping the heel of Jonathan David, who was going nowhere, meandering near the right-hand corner of the box. Oh Shane!
Admin update! Ben has scored his second for Red Star on 24 minutes: it’s Red Star Belgrade 2-0 Liberec. Marko Raguz make it LASK 3-1 Ludogorets on 34 minutes. And Ishak Belfodil opens the scoring for Hoffenheim in Gent with a 36-minute penalty.
GOAL! Lille 0-2 Celtic (Elyounoussi 32)
A second for Mohamed Elyounoussi in short order! Good work by Jeremie Frimpong down the inside right. He reaches the corner of the box and cuts across to Elyounoussi, who swivels 15 yards from goal and threads a shot into the bottom left! Celtic have been extremely dangerous going forward since the get-go, and this is their reward.
Updated
GOAL! Antwerp 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur (Refaelov 29)
Ben Davies is robbed by Dieumerci Mbokani, fannying about near the halfway line. Spurs are left short at the back. It’s two on one. Mbokani romps down the right and hooks into the middle for Lior Refaelov. He’s alone, and able to slam past Hugo Lloris into the bottom left.
Updated
In the other Group H game, Brahim Diaz has given AC Milan the lead against Sparta Prague on 24 minutes.
GOAL! Lille 0-1 Celtic (Elyounoussi 28)
This is sensational! A couple of minutes ago, Mohamed Elyounoussi lifted a gilt-edged chance over the bar from six yards. No matter! Celtic quickly come again at their hosts. Elyounoussi drifts in from the left. He’s got options either side, but opens his body and curls a peach into the top right from 25 yards. Mike Maignan in the Lille goal stands stock still in admiration. That’s as good a finish as we’ll see in Europe all week.
A half-chance for Tottenham in Antwerp, with Carlos Vinícius momentarily clear down the inside-right channel. But hesitation proves fatal to his hopes, and possession is lost without the dice having been rolled. Meanwhile here’s Michael Gibbons with some more Uefa Cup memories: “As Napoli are playing tonight, and it’s Maradona’s 60th tomorrow, can we have a polite smattering of applause for how they landed the Uefa Cup in tandem in 1989? It’s still Napoli’s only European title but, amid World Cups and Scudettos, seems to have been marginalised in the Maradona story and reduced mostly to that Live is Life warm-up in Munich. Back then the competition housed the calibre of teams that occupy the Champions League today, and Napoli sorted out Juventus and Bayern on their way to beating Stuttgart in the final. It’s a victory that deserves way more credit than it gets.”
Not a great deal going on in the Spurs match. Anyone who tuned into the Burnley game on Monday night won’t be super-surprised at this news.
Albian Ajeti puts the ball into the net for Celtic, slotting efficiently into the bottom right after being sprung down the inside-left channel by Mohamed Elyounoussi. But the flag goes up for offside, correctly so. The game remains goalless.
GOAL! AEK 0-1 Leicester City (Vardy 19 pen)
AEK keeper Panagiotis Tsintotas brings down Jamie Vardy. Leicester’s top scorer picks himself up, dusts himself down, gets his gameface on, and lashes an unstoppable kick into the left-hand side of the net.
Updated
The goals keep coming in Austria. Andreas Gruber made it 2-0 for LASK on 11 minutes, but Elvis Manu halved the deficit for Ludogorets four minutes later. Meanwhile it’s now two penalties for Wolfsberger’s Michael Liendl. The second, on 13 minutes, has put his side 2-0 up at Feyenoord.
Shane Duffy hasn’t been enjoying the start to his Celtic career. He’s been trying a wee bit too hard, and he’s at it once again here, sliding in hysterically on Jonathan Bamba. He goes in the book, and it’s a free kick in a very dangerous position for Lille. Yusuf Yazici takes, and nearly finds the top right. Bain again to the rescue, and nothing comes of the corner.
So much for Celtic’s confident start. Lille have started to push them back, and after a penalty-box scramble, Boubakary Soumaré drove goalwards, only to be denied by the strong arm of Scott Bain. That’s a fine save.
Ben has put 1991 European champions Red Star Belgrade ahead at home to 2002 Uefa Cup quarter-finalists Liberec. Crvena zvezda 1-0 Liberec (Ben 7). And another goal in Ukraine: Zorya 0-2 Braga (Nicolas Gaitan 11).
A couple of other early goals. A fourth-minute Michael Liendl penalty gives Wolfsberger a quick-smart advantage at De Kuip. Feyenoord 0-1 Wolfsberger (Liendl 4 pen). And Braga striker Paulinho has given his team the early lead in Lugansk. Zorya 0-1 Braga (Paulinho 3)
And we’re off! Celtic start in a very progressive manner, coming at Lille with a confidence and swagger that belies their recent form. Meanwhile in Tottenham’s group, Husein Balic has given LASK an early lead over Ludogorets. LASK 1-0 Ludogorets (Balic 2)
Updated
While we wait for kick-off, how about a quick historical trawl through this grand old competition, in all its guises? Here’s an article I can’t remember writing.
Right-o. Teams around Europe are taking to the pitch ahead of Matchday 2’s first wave of hot Europa League action. Buckle yourself in, we’ll be off in a couple of minutes.
Antwerp: Butez, Seck, Gelin, De Laet, Miyoshi, Gerkens, Haroun, Hongla, Juklerod, Mbokani, Refaelov.
Subs: Beiranvand, Birger Verstraete, Boya, Benavente, Opoku Ampomah, Buta.
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Aurier, Sanchez, Davies, Reguilon, Lo Celso, Winks, Bale, Alli, Bergwijn, Vinicius.
Subs: Doherty, Alderweireld, Hojbjerg, Son, Kane, Lamela, Hart, Sissoko, Lucas Moura, Clarke, White, Cirkin.
Sort-of-forgotten man Dele Alli makes only his third start of the season. He’s part of a starting XI much changed from Burnley on Monday night. Gareth Bale, Carlos Vinicius, Steven Bergwijn, Giovani Lo Celso and Harry Winks also step up.
Lille: Maignan, Celik, Botman, Soumaoro, Bradaric, Ikone, Soumare, Andre, Bamba, Yazici, David.
Subs: Karnezis, Djalo, Fonte, Xeka, Luiz Araujo, Yilmaz, Sanches, Lihadji, Weah, Pied, Mandava, Chevalier.
Celtic: Bain, Frimpong, Duffy, Ajer, Laxalt, Brown, McGregor, Christie, Ntcham, Elyounoussi, Ajeti.
Subs: Barkas, Taylor, Bitton, Griffiths, Klimala, Soro, Turnbull, Rogic, Edouard, Henderson, Welsh, Dembele.
No win in three for Celtic, with Neil Lennon under increasing pressure. The returns of Odsonne Edouard and Nir Bitton are most welcome, even if the pair are only considered fit enough to make the bench.
AEK Athens: Tsintotas, Bakakis, Svarnas, Nedelcearu, Insua, Shakhov, Krsticic, Livaja, Mandalos, Helder Lopes, Ansarifard.
Subs: Laci, Tankovic, Oliveira, Hnid, Athanasiadis, Mitaj, Sabanadzovic, Christopoulos, Macheras, Botos, Vasilantonopoulos, Theocharis.
Leicester City: Schmeichel, Fofana, Morgan, Fuchs, Under, Choudhury, Tielemans, Justin, Albrighton, Maddison, Vardy.
Subs: Ward, Iheanacho, Barnes, Perez, Mendy, Praet, Thomas, Jakupovic.
Jamie Vardy has recovered from a calf injury and will lead the Leicester line. Cengiz Under, on loan from Roma, makes his first start. Timothy Castange and Jonny Evans have been left out of the squad.
Preamble
Welcome to our coverage of Matchday 2 of the 2020-21 Europa League. The usual slew of matches coming your way. Here are the 5.55pm GMT kick offs:
- G: AEK Athens v Leicester City; Zorya Luhansk v Sporting Braga
- H: Lille v Celtic; Milan v Sparta Prague
- I: Qarabag v Villarreal; Sivasspor v Maccabi Tel-Aviv
- J: LASK v Ludogorets; Antwerp v Tottenham Hotspur
- K: CSKA Moscow v Dinamo Zagreb; Feyenoord v RZ Pellets
- L: Red Star Belgrade v Slovan Liberec; Gent v Hoffenheim
...and here are the ones starting at 8pm GMT.
- A: Cluj v Young Boys; Roma v Sofia
- B: Arsenal v Dundalk; Molde v Rapid Vienna
- C: Nice v Hapoel Be’er Sheva; Slavia Prague v Bayer Leverkusen
- D: Benfica v Standard Liege; Rangers v Lech Poznan
- E: Granada v PAOK Salonika; Omonia Nicosia v PSV Eindhoven
- F: AZ Alkmaar v HNK Rijeka; Real Sociedad v Napoli
Team news when we have it. Then, in hot pursuit ... goals, goals, goals. They’re on!
