Europa Conference League late roundup: Slovacko shock Nice, West Ham see off Anderlecht
Nice - Slovacko 1-2
Despite needing a victory to keep pace with Partizan Belgrade in Group D, Nice started slowly and came close to falling behind when Marek Havlik’s free-kick was smartly stopped by Kasper Schmeichel.
As it transpired, Schmeichel’s stop provided Nice with a platform to find an opener and it came in rather fortuitous circumstances as Sofiane Diop’s fierce strike was deflected in off Vlastimil Danicek.
In truth, a 1-0 half-time scoreline flattered Slovacko, who required the heroics of Filip Nguyen to deny Andy Delort, Khephren Thuram and Nicolas Pepé into what would undoubtedly have been an unassailable Nice lead.
For all Nice’s attacking endeavours in the first half, they were almost undone by a swift Slovacko counter which resulted in Michal Tomic firing straight at the legs of Schmeichel in the Nice goal.
In what was fast becoming a game of basketball in the second half, no sooner had Schmeichel been worked at one end, Nguyen was called into action at the other, producing a fine stop to tip Delort’s free-kick over the bar.
Goalkeepers were well and truly coming out on top here, with Schmeichel again on hand to preserve Nice’s advantage, stopping smartly from Havlík before Merchas Ghazi Salih prodded the rebound agonisingly wide.
Tomic had threatened a goal earlier, but having been denied by Schmeichel earlier, the Slovakian defender was in no mood to be denied again as he rifled an unstoppable effort beyond a desperate dive from the Dane.
Jean-Clair Todibo’s dismissal for a last man challenge on Michal Kadlec certainly didn’t help Nice’s quest for a late winner, and they were instead left clinging onto a point for dear life.
They couldn’t hang on though, with substitute Petr Reinberk stepping forward from the resulting free-kick to fire home an unlikely winner and just a second-ever away victory in UEFA competition.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Michal Tomic (Slovacko)
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Elsewhere in the Europa Conference League
There was plenty of action in Group B as West Ham qualified for the next round with an expected 2-1 success against Anderlecht. Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen's first half strikes gave the Hammers a comfortable buffer, which they needed late on as Sebastiano Esposito converted an 89th-minute penalty. The other game in the group saw Silkeborg lift themselves into the second qualifying spot with an impressive 5-0 win over FCSB. Soren Tengstedt and Sebastian Jorgensen both netted second-half braces in the thrashing.
Hapoel Beer Sheva and Lech Poznan shared the points with a 1-1 draw in Group C whilst Molde's 2-0 win against Shamrock Rovers in Ireland sees them need just one more win from their final two games to qualify for the next round.
FC Vaduz's chances of an incredible qualification took a big dent at the hands of Dnipro-1. The team from Liechtenstein nearly secured a third draw from four Group E games only to concede in stoppage time through Artem Dovbyk. Dnipro moved up to second behind leaders AZ Alkmaar with the 2-1 victory.
Group G's late fixture went the way of Sivasspor after they beat FC Ballkani 2-1 in Kosovo. The hosts did lead with 18 minutes to play but goals from Hakan Arslan and Karol Angielski saw Sivasspor over the line and they now top the group.
After Slovan Bratislava and Basel had battled to a 3-3 draw earlier in the day, it left Group H wide open for both Pyunik Yerevan and Zalgiris. The Lithuanian side took full advantage, dragging themselves back into contention with a 2-1 win over their Armenian opponents.
