- FC Basel lost the first leg of the 3rd qualifying round of the Conference League against Brondby 0-1.
- The Danish goal came in the 75th minute. In added time, Basel should have received a penalty.
- Of the other two Swiss representatives in the Conference League, only YB wins, Lugano also loses.
FC Basel suffered their first defeat of the season in Denmark – a bitter defeat. On the one hand, because the guests from the Rheinknie were evenly matched for long stretches. On the other hand, because FCB should have been awarded a penalty in injury time. But one after anonther.
Once borderline, once more than borderline
The positive first: With 0:1, the mortgage for the second leg in a week is not too big. In addition, Basel could have fallen behind much earlier. Simon Hedlund had a big chance after just 18 seconds, but was denied by the side netting after cornering FCB keeper Hitz.
The first and only goal at Brondby Stadium came after 74 minutes. Marko Divkovic, who had just come on as a substitute, used a majority situation to make it 1-0. The goal came after a borderline ball win against Andi Zeqiri in his own half of the field. Newcomer Zeqiri, like scorer Divkovic, came on in the 70th minute.
The offense against Dan Ndoye in stoppage time was more than borderline. The FCB striker was caught on the foot by a Dane in the penalty area and lost his footing. However, the referee did not classify the intervention as a foul, there is no VAR in the qualification.
Pressure phases of the Danes
In the first half, both teams acted according to the same motto: don’t allow anything at the back, create chances at the front by switching quickly. The FCB needed some start-up time to find the defensive order. The best chance of the goalless first half belonged to Ndoye, who shot too centrally in front of goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.
Even after the break, it was the hosts who initially put a lot more pressure on. The Basel team finally conceded the goal in a phase in which they had long been playing at eye level again.