- YB lost 3-1 to Sporting Lisbon in the first leg of the 1/16 final of the Europa League in Wankdorf.
- Filip Ugrinic scored Bern’s only goal to make it 1-2 shortly before half-time, but he was injured in the process.
- Two offside goals from YB were disallowed and Mohamed Ali Camara was sent off with a yellow-red card.
For a short time it looked as if the momentum in the game with the clearly favored Portuguese would tip over to YB’s side. Namely, a few minutes before the break, when Cedric Itten shot the ball into the net with full force to make it 2-2 and caused the sold-out Wankdorf to tremble. But the jubilation only lasted a short time. Because Itten was clearly offside when he passed the ball, the hit, which was played so well, rightly didn’t count.
It would have been a YB double blow, because a few minutes earlier Filip Ugrinic had made it 1-2. The Swiss offensive player reacted quickest after a rebound and acrobatically fed the ball into the goal. However, when the shot was fired, Ugrinic was hit so hard on the foot that he then had to be substituted – another downer for YB on an all-in-all disappointing evening.
Gaps at YB
After the break, hopes of a possible YB turnaround quickly evaporated. After a foul by Aurèle Amenda, Sporting got a free kick. The cross flew perfectly into the penalty area, where defender Goncalo Inacio prevailed and skillfully headed in to make it 3-1.
Legend:
Sporting celebrates, YB pulls away.
The Portuguese prove to be too strong.
Claudio De Capitani/freshfocus
It was to be the last goal of the evening. Although the Portuguese in particular still had chances. Pedro Goncalves missed the biggest one when his low shot from around 10 meters was missed by David von Ballmoos, who directed the ball onto the post. After that, the guests slowed down and allowed YB a little more control when they had the ball.
However, not much came of it. A supposed 2:3 by Silvère Ganvoula was rightly denied in the 87th minute. After the yellow-red card against Mohamed Ali Camara (89th), the game was definitely decided.
Unlucky Raven Amenda
In the first half, the Bernese were able to keep up even better. After a quarter of an hour, Amenda narrowly missed making it 1-0 with her header. In general, the central defender was often at the center of the action, as he was given the task of following striker Viktor Gyökeres every step of the way. So it wasn’t the Swede who scored the first goal – but Amenda himself. The central defender directed a cross into his own goal in front of the striker who was ready to take the shot (31′).
10 minutes after the first goal, Von Ballmoos was defeated again. This time it was Gyökeres’ turn. From the penalty point – YB’s goalkeeper had previously laid down an onrushing opponent – he easily made it 2-0.
This is how it goes
On Sunday YB will face Stade-Lausanne-Ouchy in the championship. The second leg will take place in Lisbon next Thursday from 9 p.m.