Europa League Roundup: Arsenal ease past Bodo/Glimt as Roma slip up on Betis banana peel

Arsenal - Bodo/Glimt: 3-0

Despite beating Lillestrom SK 4-1 at the weekend, the Eliteserien race is all but run, leaving Bodo/Glimt to fully focus on European progression.

Nonetheless, a trip to North London was likely to prove demanding, and Arsenal almost took an early lead when abio Vieira’s close-range half-volley clipped the crossbar on the way over.

With Glimt not content to sit deep, the scoreline didn’t hold for long, as the Gunners hit incisively on the counter. Gabriel Martinelli carried the play forward before picking out Kieran Tierney, who struck the far post, only for Eddie Nketiah to react quickly and turn the ball into an unguarded net.

Just five minutes later, Vieira’s exquisite inswinging cross found the head of Rob Holding, who doubled his side’s lead.

Granit Xhaka saw his free-kick tipped over in the first period, and came close once again after the break, firing at Nikita Khaykin from inside the box. Glimt remained unfettered in their approach, posing Arsenal questions with their expansive attacking play, but were coming up short in the final third.

Substitute Martin Odegaard slipped in Nketiah late on, but the forward disappointingly blazed over. Nevertheless, Arsenal put the game to bed soon after when Gabriel Jesus showed exceptional strength and close control to weave his way into the box, before presenting Vieira with the simple task of sweeping home.

The Gunners survived a late threat to their clean sheet, making it six wins from their last seven games and placing them in good stead for a return to the knockouts stages of UEL. For Bodø/Glimt failure to win any of their last eight European away games is far from a disaster considering they have accrued four points from their opening two UEL games.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Fabio Vieira (Arsenal)

See all the stats on Flashscore.

AS Roma - Real Betis: 1-2

Luiz Henrique struck a dramatic 88th-minute winner as Real Betis came from behind to beat AS Roma at the Stadio Olimpico. The Spaniards ended the Giallorossi’s 20-game unbeaten run on home soil in European competition to take complete control of Group C in the UEFA Europa League.

Manuel Pellegrini’s men were quick out of the blocks as they looked to assert their authority on the group with two wins already on the board. Sergio Canales and Nabil Fekir both went close to an opener, the Frenchman even hitting the post from the edge of the area.

A sucker punch was on the way though, as Roma won a penalty thanks to the intervention of VAR, ruling that Aitor Ruibal had handled inside the area. Paulo Dybala stepped up and showed incredible composure to dispatch the spot-kick, scoring for a fourth consecutive game for the Giallorossi.

The hosts’ lead would last just six minutes though as Betis deservedly found a leveller. Winning the ball back in the attacking third, Guido Rodriguez unleashed a piledriver to firmly beat Rui Patricio into the bottom corner.

While Los Verdiblancos’ goal was more than merited, their foot came off the gas before the break and nearly allowed Roma back into the game. Nicolo Zaniolo struck the bar before a venomous Dybala volley forced a spectacular save from Claudio Bravo.

Jose Mourinho’s men picked up where they left off before the break and really ought to have taken the lead in the early stages of the second half. A goalmouth scramble eventually landed to Bryan Cristante, who volleyed at goal, but Bravo was on hand to continue his vintage display and make the save.

The flow of the game was disrupted by a raft of substitutions, but it turned out to be a first-half introduction that struck the decisive blow. Rodri’s cross was deflected towards the back post, where Henrique was waiting to produce a world-class header, looping over Patricio into the far corner.

Pellegrini’s men are now five points clear atop Group C, leaving Roma with a mountain to climb to secure automatic qualification to the knockout stages. To make matters even worse, Zaniolo was sent off in stoppage time for a petulant kick out at an opposition player, leaving Mourinho with plenty to ponder.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Claudio Bravo (Real Betis)

See all the stats on Flashscore.

Freiburg - Nantes: 2-0

SC Freiburg maintained their 100% record in this season’s Europa League with an emphatic over Nantes at the Europa-Park Stadion. The result was also the hosts’ sixth clean sheet in nine outings.

The two sides came into this clash in contrasting form, with Freiburg joint-top of the Bundesliga and unbeaten in their last eight games in all competitions and Nantes floundering towards the bottom of Ligue 1 after picking up just one league win in nine outings.

It was unsurprising, therefore, to see the hosts dominate possession in the first 45 minutes, moving the ball around the field with confidence despite losing forward Michael Gregoritsch to injury after 20 minutes.

The final pass or shot was lacking, though, with Daniel-Kofi Kyereh’s deflected shot that almost wrong-footed Alban Lafont and Gregorisch’s early effort, also stopped by the Frenchman, the closest hosts came to breaking the deadlock before halftime.

Only a lack of precision prevented Freiburg, who were without manager Christian Streich in the dugout after the German’s positive COVID-19 test, from making their superiority count in the first period.

However, it took them less than three minutes to correct that after the interval as Ritsu Doan cleverly slipped in Kyereh, who swept home with aplomb from eight yards.

That opener allowed the hosts to play with even more confidence, and they doubled their lead midway through the half. Vincenzo Grifo has long been one of this side’s key players, and he produced a lovely finish from just inside the area to secure the three points.

This was an exemplary performance from Freiburg, who closed out the match with relative ease, although Samuel Moutoussamy should have halved the deficit instead of somehow heading over with an empty net at his mercy.

As such, Streich’s men top Group E with nine points and know a victory in the reverse fixture next week will secure their place in the knockout stages. Nantes, meanwhile, were second best throughout the 90 minutes and now sit third, with one win and two defeats from three matches.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Daniel-Kofi Kyereh (Freiburg)

See all the stats on Flashscore.

In other fixtures:

Elsewhere in the late fixtures, there was a Group B double matchup. Fenerbahce and Rennes both recorded home wins. Fener beat AEK Larnaca 2-0 while Rennes defeated Dynamo Kyiv 2-1. The results leave the two victors level on top of the group with seven points.  

In Group D, Royale Union SG went top of the group with a 94th-minute winner away at Braga, winning 2-1.

Feyenoord let a two-goal lead slip away at Midtjylland in Group F. Their 2-2 draw now means that all four teams in the group, Lazio and Sturm Graz being the others, are level on four points with half the games played.

Finally, in Group G, Olympiacos' terrible start to the Europa League continues. They were shocked, falling to a 3-0 defeat at home to Qarabag. They are still without a single point in the group.