UEFA Europa League round-up: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang equals goalscoring record, Angel Di Maria brace steals win - Eurosport
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang matched Radamo Falcao's record as the highest scorer in the history of the UEFA Europa League during Marseille's exciting 2-2 game against Shakhtar Donetsk.
The beginning of the game was postponed as smoke from the supporters caused a problem. Then, Aubameyang managed to score his 30th goal and put Marseille ahead at the 60-minute mark of the competition.
The home team was not able to maintain their advantage when Mykola Matviyenko scored for the Ukrainian team just two minutes later. However, in the final moments of the game, it seemed like Iliman Ndiaye had secured a win for Marseille.
Nonetheless, Shakhtar responded immediately once again with Eguinaldo's goal, securing a crucial tie.
The match between Galatasaray and Sparta Prague was quite dramatic, and it even included a last-minute goal. Additionally, both teams had to play with only 10 players until the end of the game.
Galatasaray dominated the first half with Kerem Demirbay scoring a goal. However, Ladislav Krejci evened the score by scoring an own goal.
Shortly after, Galatasaray was hit hard with two unfortunate events. Victor Nelsson was removed from the game after committing a foul as the final defender, just before Jan Kuchta equalized for the opposing team. Nonetheless, Mauro Icardi clinched a victory for the home team by scoring in the 91st minute.
Sporting Lisbon's triumph against Young Boys stirred up a debate after Marcus Edwards was awarded a penalty in the concluding moments of the first half.
During the game between Sporting, David von Ballmoos gave away a penalty when it seemed like he had stepped on Edwards' feet. However, upon further examination, replays indicated that Edwards had fallen without much physical contact.
Viktor Gyokeres took the opportunity to score from the penalty spot which resulted in the Portuguese team gaining a two-goal lead. They managed to secure an important victory while playing away from home.
During Qarabag FK's 4-2 win against Braga, Abdellah Zoubir scored two goals, with the first being disallowed for offside during a free-kick. This decision was viewed as peculiar.
Victor Gomez of Braga positioned himself behind the defense wall to prevent Yassine Benzia's low free-kick from reaching the goal. The free-kick was taken from outside the box, and unintentionally allowed Zoubir to be in an onside position. After a review from VAR, the goal was allowed.
In Portugal, Benfica was able to gain an upper hand over Toulouse in the second leg with Angel Di Maria's winning goal in the 98th minute.
The ex-Real Madrid player scored a goal from a penalty kick to break the tie in the 68th minute, however, Mikkel Desler managed to even the score for the French team seven minutes later.
In the final moments of the game, Christian Mawissa fouled Marcos Leonardo in the box and was presented with a second yellow card, causing him to be expelled. This resulted in Benfica being granted their second penalty of the match, which was once again expertly scored by Di Maria for his second goal of the game.
On Thursday, February 22, the Europa League knockout play-offs continue with the second leg matches.
Results From Europa League Knockout Round Play-off First-leg
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