Nijmegen and Polster on the brink of elimination in CL Qualifiers

There's little cause for joy for two Austrian internationals in the Champions League playoffs. Both are facing an anxious wait with their clubs over progression.

Source text: © LAOLA1

Comments

The first legs of the UEFA Champions League playoffs concluded on Wednesday with four matches.

From an Austrian perspective, the focus was not only on LASK, who suffered a 0-3 defeat away to Celtic Glasgow (to the match report>>>), but also on Austrian internationals Nikolas Polster and Kevin Wimmer.

Nijmegen clearly defeated by Bodö/Glimt

For ex-WAC goalkeeper Polster and NEC Nijmegen, things look bleak after their 1-3 loss to Bodö/Glimt. The 24-year-old, however, watched the entire match from the bench.

The favoured Norwegians took the lead through Sondre Brunstad Fet (25'), with Andreas Helmersen doubling it to 2-0 from the penalty spot just before halftime (44'). After the break, Haitam Aleesami sealed what appeared to be the decisive goal with a header (50').

Nijmegen only managed a consolation goal in the final phase. Following a Tahui cross, Dusan Tadic flicked the ball on to the far post, where former Salzburg player Clement Bischoff was perfectly positioned to tap it in for 1-3 (86').

Nijmegen now needs a small footballing miracle in the return leg in Norway to still make it into the Champions League group stage.

Wimmer experiences a draw from the bench

Kevin Wimmer also faces an anxious wait with Slovan Bratislava for progression. The former Rapid Wien player did not feature in the 1-1 draw against NK Celje.

The Slovakian champions took the lead through Roman Cerepkai after a quarter of an hour (15'). The Slovenians equalized just before halftime through Milot Avdyli (41').

Yaya Toure's team was the more dangerous side in the second half but couldn't find a winning goal. Ahead of the return leg in Slovenia, everything remains open.

Ex-Wolfsberg player leads Beer Sheva to victory

In the third fixture of the evening, Hapoel Beer Sheva secured a 2-1 victory against Sabah FK. Due to the security situation in Israel, the match was played on neutral ground in Bucharest.

The Israelis fell behind after just six minutes through Veljko Simic. Javon East managed to equalize before halftime (43').

An former Bundesliga player ultimately secured the turnaround. Ex-WAC playmaker Eliel Peretz delivered a dangerous corner in the 79th minute, and Igor Zlatanovic headed it in for 2-1.

Beer Sheva thus takes a narrow lead into the return leg against the Azerbaijani champions.