European football: TNS battle before Fiorentina defeat, Hearts snatch late win

The New Saints showed remarkable determination before losing 2-0 to Fiorentina during a memorable evening in Italy. They made history by becoming the first Welsh league team to advance past the qualifying stages of a UEFA tournament. Their first match in the Conference League group stage took them on a challenging journey to Florence.

Fiorentina finished in second place for the last two years, but it took them 65 minutes to break through the TNS defense. Yacine Adli scored the first goal, quickly followed by another from Moise Kean, the former Everton striker.

Connor Roberts anticipated a lot of action in the TNS goal, and he delivered with a skillful fingertip save to thwart Christian Kouamé in the 10th minute. He then managed to block a shot from Lucas Beltrán at the near post. Just before halftime, the away team got lucky when Rolando Mandragora's attempt hit the post, sparing them from conceding.

Fiorentina controlled the ball for most of the match, and 20 minutes into the second half, Roberts was finally scored on. Adli took advantage of a lucky bounce just outside the penalty area after Jonathan Ikoné made a run down the left side and found the bottom corner of the net. Just four minutes later, TNS fell further behind after Matías Moreno's shot took a significant deflection, landing right in front of Kean. He managed to score on his second try after Roberts had blocked his first attempt.

TNS had their best opportunity to score in the 75th minute when Declan McManus nearly converted a pass from Joshua Daniels into the box. At the same time, Roberts made some crucial saves, preventing the gap from widening with efforts from Kean and Amir Richardson. The Cymru Premier team will face Astana from Kazakhstan in their next European match at home later this month.

It was a remarkable evening for Larne, marking a milestone as they became the first team from the Irish Premiership to compete in the group stage of the Conference League. However, their big moment was overshadowed by a disappointing performance, as they suffered a significant 3-0 defeat against the Norwegian club Molde.

There was a moment of triumph for Scotland in the match, as substitute Yan Dhanda scored a dramatic last-minute goal for Hearts, who are currently without a manager. This goal secured their first win of the season against Dinamo Minsk in Azerbaijan.

The Edinburgh team had struggled to secure a victory in their previous 10 games this season and it seemed like they were in for another disappointing evening when Stephen Alfred gave the Belarusian champions the lead in the 20th minute. However, Hearts managed to level the score in the 37th minute thanks to an own goal from Sergey Politevich. Then, in a dramatic finish, Dhanda found the net with a header in the 94th minute.

In the Europa League, Lazio, Anderlecht, and Steaua Bucharest all kept their perfect records intact. Lazio delivered a strong performance against Nice, winning 4-1. Pedro was the first to score, followed by two goals from Valentín Castellanos, with Jeremie Boga scoring a goal for Nice in between. Mattia Zaccagni then sealed the victory with a penalty.

Anderlecht secured two victories, including a notable 2-1 triumph over Real Sociedad. The home team took an early lead with a goal from Pablo Marín, but Luis Vázquez equalized after 28 minutes, and Théo Leoni netted the decisive goal just before halftime. On the other hand, Steaua Bucharest managed to clinch a 1-0 victory against Paok, with Daniel Birligea scoring the sole goal during first-half stoppage time, despite Darius Olaru receiving a red card in the 55th minute.

Ajax faced a setback when they drew 1-1 against Slavia Prague, finishing the match with only ten players. Branco van den Boomen opened the scoring for the Dutch team with a penalty, but Tomas Chory equalized in the second half. Things took a turn for Ajax when Youri Baas was shown a red card with 15 minutes remaining in the game.

Iñaki Williams and Oihan Sancet netted two late goals to help Athletic Club secure a 2-0 victory over AZ Alkmaar. In the Netherlands, José Mourinho's Fenerbahce came back from one goal down to level the match 1-1 against Twente, with Dusan Tadic equalizing after Michel Vlap had put Twente ahead. Meanwhile, Mourinho's old team, Roma, experienced a frustrating 1-0 loss to Elfsborg, with Michael Baidoo converting a penalty to claim the win.

Adam Hlozek netted both goals in Hoffenheim’s 2-0 victory over Dynamo Kyiv. Meanwhile, Olympiako, the reigning Conference League champions, also registered their first win by comfortably defeating Braga 3-0. Eintracht Frankfurt made the most of a strong start to secure a 3-1 away victory against Besiktas. In other results, Galatasaray played to a 2-2 draw with Rigas, Midtjylland triumphed over Maccabi Tel Aviv with a 2-0 scoreline, and Malmö took down Qarabag 2-1. Additionally, Union Saint-Gilloise faced Bodø/Glimt in a scoreless tie, as did Viktoria Plzen and Ludogorets.