The Azerbaijani side Writes History with Remarkable Triumph Over Benfica
A club representing Azerbaijan had never won in the Champions League before Qarabag's impressive performance versus Benfica.
Qarabag produced a remarkable fightback against Benfica to make history and become the pioneering Azerbaijani side to win a Champions League main draw match.
Having qualified for the continent’s top club tournament for the initial occasion in eight years, Gurban Gurbanov's side found themselves confronted with a two-goal disadvantage after only 16 minutes following goals from Enzo Barrenechea and Vangelis Pavlidis.
The domestic titleholders reduced the gap on the first half’s midway point through a excellent Leandro Andrade finish before colleague Borges struck the foot of the post.
Just moments after the break, the Azerbaijani visitors shut up the Lisbon arena with the leveller. Jankovic’s perfect pass found Duran and he brilliantly found the back of the net on his first UCL appearance.
Substitute Oleksii Kashchuk got the historic decisive strike five minutes from time, receiving the ball up with his back to goal before finishing superbly on the turn.
The team and coaching staff dropped to their knees in celebration at the final whistle after a win that will be recorded in Champions League history, with their last participation finishing with two draws and four losses.
Coming up for Gurbanov and his team is a fixture at their own stadium with FC Copenhagen, while the Eagles travel to Chelsea.
Related Topics
- European Football
- UEFA Champions League
- Football
