APOEL shock Fiorentina to make history with battling victory
La Viola, finalists in this competition in each of the past two seasons, had won eight of their last nine games (D1) prior to kick-off, a run which includes two victories from their opening two league phase matches this season.
They dominated possession early on, yet struggled to break down APOEL, who had only one UECL point ahead of tonight but were very disciplined defensively and could perhaps have been awarded a penalty when Sergio Tejera went down under contact from Lucas Martínez Quarta.
Having already been booked for running into Yacine Adli, Tejera was perhaps also lucky not to have been shown a second yellow after dragging down the same man in the middle of the pitch.
Ultimately, Fiorentina were punished for their lack of cutting edge as a neat passing move from their opponents ended with Youssef El-Arabi slipping a ball through to Tasos Donis, who held off Michael Kayode and beat Pietro Terracciano from close range with a dinked finish on 37 minutes.
The visitors almost responded when Kayode found Amir Richardson unmarked in the box, but the midfielder’s weak shot was straight at Vid Belec, who was then forced to make an excellent diving save to push Rolando Mandragora’s drive behind.
Just before the break, APOEL doubled their advantage. Ghana international David Abagna momentarily lost possession after taking a heavy touch following a menacing run, but Kayode’s attempt to clear his lines saw the ball ricochet off his team-mate Cristiano Biraghi and fall invitingly back for Abagna, who blasted home to the delight of the majority inside the GCP Stadium.
The hosts first came close to scoring in the second period when Issam Chebake headed Xavi Quintillà’s free-kick wastefully wide. The Italian giants duly halved the deficit on 74 minutes however as substitute Lucas Beltran’s ball forward couldn’t be cut out by Konstantinos Laifis, before Jonathan Ikoné played a one-two with Christian Kouame and rolled a shot coolly in off a post.
Despite some late nervy moments, APOEL ground out a famous victory which breathes new life into their UECL campaign.
Meanwhile, Fiorentina lost without scoring for the first time since last season’s final in the competition against Olympiacos and must now regroup as they prepare to face Hellas Verona on Sunday in Serie A.
Flashscore Man of the Match: David Abagna (APOEL FC)