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Round 2
Iraklis Thessaloniki 0-2 West Ham United
44' Suyumagembetov
76' Kaurin
West Ham, fresh off their mauling of Aston Villa, travelled to Thessaloniki with great hope, as they were aware of Thessaloniki's status as the whipping boys of Div 4H. However, it was Thessaloniki who started brighter, passing the ball around fluidly and efficiently. Captain Lukasz Wojda had a great chance from the first corner, heading narrowly over, when he should've really scored. West Ham United improved as the first-half progressed and had a huge penalty shout turned down by the referee. Replays showed that Thessaloniki goalkeeper, Christiansen, had brought down Suyumagembetov in the box and was lucky not to be sent off. It didn't make a huge difference, as United opened the scoring just before the interval. Acuna, United's midfield maestro, hit a free-kick against the wall, of which the rebound was struck hard and low by Gordon. Christiansen could only parry the ball into the oath of Suyumagambetov, who had the easiest of tap-ins to make it 0-1. As the second half began, it was clear that Thessaloniki were slowly tiring and West Ham pressed on for the second goal which would kill the game off. They got it 14 minutes before the end, when Uruguayan youngster, Lopez, displayed his potential, with a wonderful ball to Kaurin, who finished it exquisitely.
Yellow cards: Reasco, Wojda (Iraklis Thessaloniki) Sonck, Rouyer, Zacharias (West Ham)
Man of the Match: Murat Suyumagambetov (West Ham United)
RC Lens 0-1 Litex
63' Tanska
The hard run of fixtures continued for Litex, who had to face their second relegated team in a row, RC Lens. Litex hadn't looked very convinving in their first match, and this game offered very little in terms of quality, as most of the football was played in the middle of the park. It was Lens who started better, dominating possession, but creating very little, as the Litex back four of Hlebski, Ngom, Tanska and Zhuang held firm to their task. Brazilian sensation Maciel surprised Litex by hitting a rasping shot from 30 yards, which thoroughly stung the palms of Sales de Souza. Otherwise, there was no real conviction about any team, and at the interval, it was about even. However, this was a game of two halves, as the second half was much more interesting and lively. This time, it was Litex who started the better of the two teams, forcing a brief period of pressure upon the Lens defence. Takayama, the hero last time, hit the bar with another superb shot from the outside of the box, with the keeper nowhere in sight. Litex didn't have to wait long for their goal. Nearly 20 minutes into the second half, Takayama, now playing on the wing, turned provider, as his inch-perfect cross was met by centre-half Tanska, who had run the length of the pitch to score the header. Instead, of being rejuvenated, Lens were forced back into their shells as Litex, buoyed by the goal, pressed on for the second, but with no success. Lens task was made much harder 5 minutes before the end, when midfielder Webb was booked for a dangerou tackle on Clayton, and then sent off for offensive language towards the referee. Remarkably, there was time for one more sending off, as Belarussian talent, Khomenko, was sent off for a two-footed lunge on Alonso, having been booked just a minute previously. However, Litex held onto their lead and cemented their place at the top of the table.
Yellow cards: Silva, Webb, Alonso (Lens) Khomenko, Sukiasyan, Klincic (Litex)
Red cards: Webb (Lens) Khomenko (Litex)
Man of the Match: Falle Ngom (Litex)
Ajax Cape Town 3-3 Perth Glory
16' Barberis 15' Besnier
24' Moshoeu 21' Casoltan
32' Fanteni 33' own goal
A classic of a match, the battle between the two relegated teams was as intense as there ever had been in Div 4H. 6 goals in the first half was testimony to the great attacking of both teams, neither wanting to back down and be defeated. This was just the type of match that both teams needed, after Ajax's tame draw and Glory's comfortable win against Atlantas. Both teams attacked incessantly right from kick-off and Ajax could've been ahead in inside a minute, but Vukic fluffed a great chance, as he was stopped as he tried to round the keeper. They were made to pay for that miss, as Glory took the lead against the run of play. French talent Besnier rounded off a slick move by finishing beautifully, after good work from Benin wonderkid winder, Mané. However, Ajax were level inside a minute. Right from the restart, midfielder Guerrero went on a mazy run, beating 3 defenders on the way, but his shot was superbly saved by Glory keeper, Kossimli. However, he could do little to prevent the bullet header by Barberis, which almost broke the net. Ajax were rejuvenated by this and immediately went close again, as Fanteni struck the woodwork with a beauty of a shot. It was not to be, as Glory once again went ahead, again against the run of play. After a free-kcik was cleared, Glory broke in numbers, but winger Saraceno was brought down just on the edge of the box by defender Barberis, who was lucky only to receive a yellow card. However, from the resulting free-kick, Romanian striker Casoltan smashed the ball through the wall and into the net, with the keeper nowhere to be seen. It seemed as though Ajax had nothing left, but there was a surprise, as slack defending, coupled by precise shooting, enabled Ajax to equalise. Fong's clearance fell to Fanteni, who instead of having a shot, unselfishly squared the ball Moshoeu, who tapped in. And just eight minutes later, Ajax went in front for the first time. Guerrero was the provider, as his defence-splitting pass found Fanteni in acres of space, who blasted the ball pass the keeper. By this time, the supporters were throroughly entertained by this game. However, inside a minute, Glory were level, albeit fortunately. Groarke's shot was going wide until it took a massive deflection off Ali, which wrong-footed the keerp and made the scores 3-3. There was little to talk about in the second half, as neither team ventured forward to grab that decisive goal.
Yellow cards: Dimov, Barberis, Berchem, Guerrero, Vukic, Spautz (Ajax) Kossimli, Hudson, Saraceno, Groarke (Glory)
Red cards: Groarke (Glory)
Man of the Match: Thembinkosi Fanteni (Ajax Cape Town)
Aston Villa 0-1 Red Star Belgrad
27' Maida
Aston Villa, destroyed by English counterparts West Ham, took to the field in renewed optimism as they faced another one of the bottom blubs, Red Star Belgrad. However, it was Belgrad who started the game better with a siege on the Villa defence, as they tried to score the goal which would put additional pressure on Villa. They finally got their reward 27 minutes into the first half, when right-back Di Paolo fouled Smirnovs in the area. From the resulting penalty, Italian striker Maida dispatched the penalty straight down the middle, completely fooling the goalkeeper. Instead of trying to equalise, Villa offered little pressure on Belgrad defence and the service was horrendous for the strike pairing of Aponte and Petrov. The second-half was a drab affair, as Belgrad 'parked the bus' in front of their goal. The only talking point was the harsh dismissal Sokolskis, who was shown an undeserved second yellow card for bringing down Rujana, when replays showed he had clearly got the ball. However, Belgrad held on for the win.
Yellow cards: Di Paolo, Petrov (Villa) Sokolskis, Smirnovs (Belgrad)
Red card: Sokolskis (Belgrad)
Man of the Match: Vanni Maida (Red Star Belgrad)
Atlantas 2-1 Panionios
45' Finlayson 90' Oleksic
72' Crespo
This was a game that was dominated by the midfield of both the teams. Atlantas were the ones who started brightly, perhaps wanting to show that the comfortable defeat against Perth Glory was a one-off. Atlatas could've been out of sight in the first-half, but the attack was culpable for a series of gilt-edged chances that really should've been in the back of the net. Instead, the failure of taking those chances buoyed Panionios , and they were showing ominous forms of their best, as a crisp one-two by Zelmikas and Crespo only found the side netting. So it was a relief, when at the stroke of half-time Finlayson ensured that Atlantas would have something to show for their efforts, as his deilightful curler from 25 yards found its way in the bottom right-hand corner of the net, with Panionios goalkeeper Almeida well beaten, despite his despairing dive. After the second-half, however, Panionios came out firing all cylinders, with clearly the manager's words still ringing in their ears. This time, it was Panionios' turn to miss several good chances, with striker Kotsolis the most culpable as his headers, first from a corner from 2 yards and then a diving header were easily saved by Atlantas keeper, Ingvaldsen. Panionios were made to pay for their inept attacking, as Atlantas broke awya, with defender, Abramian's long hoof found Crespo in acres of space, who only had to slot the ball past Almeida to give Atlantas a 2-0 lead. Panionios deflated after this goal, but still found time for a consolation, as Cristaldo's cross was perfectly placed by striker Oleksic. However, it was a mere consolation, as Atlantas held on to clinch their first victory of the new season.
Yellow cards: Ingvaldsen, Stashauskas, Rishkus, Crespo (Atlantas) Almeida, Barreto (Panionios)
Red card: Chatzikyriakidis (Panionios)
Man of the Match: Seryozha Abramian (Atlantas)
Fenix 0-0 CD Universidad Catolica
The game was marred by serious offences by two players. However, in terms of quality or chances, this game was very poor. However, Fenix did force a couple of very good saves from Arabian goal keeper Al-Hagbani, who is slowly looking like a bargain at £4m. However, there was a huge setback for Catolica, as influential midfielder, Issam Abdellaoui, was red-carded for punching opposition counterpart Cardozo. Despite going down to 10 men, Catolica had little problems with the Fenix attack and went into half-time all square. In the second half, much like the first, there was little in terms of quality and chances created. The talking point was another sending-off by the referee. This time, the guilty party was Fenix's Uruguayan striker, Rariz, who was sent off for a two-footed lunge at Prieto, who was lucky he still had his two legs intact. Other than that, it was a dull affair, as neither team looked likely to break the deadlock.
Yellow cards: Cardozo, Rariz (Fenix) Antoine, Tskitishvili, Corrales (Catolica)
Red cards: Rariz (Fenix) Abdellaoui (Catolica)
Man of the Match: Salman Al-Hagbani (CD Universidad Catolica)
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the name's Ronaldo...... Cristiano Ronaldo
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