Arouca defeated SK Brann (2-1) in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the Europa League.
After seven years of terrible elimination in the play-offs of the European League, Arauca finally finds the European scene. That night the team Arroquens Norway’s SK Brann hosted the first leg of the third qualifying round of the European Conference League. At home, this was the perfect opportunity to get the Qualifying Round off to a good start and claim victory in front of their fans.
Bittersweet victory
Did the locals enter the square shyly? of course no. Daniel Ramos’ forces wanted to bend the match from the first minutes of the meeting. Their attacking transitions were effective and paid off after 22 minutes of play: Rafa Mujica feinted the opposing goalkeeper and opened the scoring.
In the second half, the Yellows and Blues continued their successful counterattack-based plan. This gave rise to many occasions that were sadly harvested. But after a great combination inside the penalty area, Cristo González found himself in a good position and scored. Thus he doubles the service of his family (73′). Just a few minutes after that goal, the visitors pulled one back through Magnus Warming (79 degrees).
So Arouca came away with the win (2-1): a positive result but one that could have been more consistent, given the number of chances the Portuguese had (13 shots, 8 of them on target).
The second leg will take place next Thursday (17/8) at Brann Stadion, at 8 pm (French time).
