Valencia was on the verge of being knocked out of the UEFA Europa League in the round of 16 for the second consecutive year. Then Goncalo Guedes showed why he’s one of the top young attackers in Europe.
Deep in second half stoppage time, the Portuguese international used a shoulder faint to get past a defender in the box, took a touch, and then slotted home with his left foot to send the visiting Valencia squad into hysterics. The goal gave Valencia a 1-1 draw on the evening but a 3-2 aggregate win over FC Kuban Krasnodar. With the win, Valencia advances to the Europa League quarterfinals.
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¡¡GOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLL DELLLL VALENCIA Y SE ESTÁ SALVANDOOOO!! Apareció Guedes como superhéroe para marcar en el 93’ y colocar al Valencia en los Cuartos 🔥🔥🔥@FCKrasnodar 1-1 @valenciacf (2-3)
— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) March 14, 2019
EN VIVO 👉 https://t.co/6FFQY5vjIS pic.twitter.com/uYLLqO6IyL
Guedes’ strike followed an outstanding curling goal into the top corner by Krasnodar’s 19-year-old midfielder Magomed Suleymanov, which had put Krasnodar in position to advance to the next round.
¡Sr. GOOOOLAZOOOO! 🚨 Shapi Suleymanov con un riflazo y está dando la sorpresa, Valencia quedaría eliminado 🚨@FCKrasnodar 1-0 @valenciacf (2-2)
— TUDN USA (@TUDNUSA) March 14, 2019
EN VIVO 👉 https://t.co/6FFQY5vjIS pic.twitter.com/8HP4Ys6J1T
Elsewhere in Europa League action, Inter Milan were bounced from the tournament by Eintracht Frankfurt. One of the top young attackers in Europe, Luka Jovic, scored the game’s only goal in the 6th minute. It’s an earlier-than-expected end to European competition for big spending Inter.
Here are the other finals from across Thursday’s Europa League action:
RB Salzburg 3-1 Napoli (3-4 agg.)
Benfica 3-0 AET Dinamo Zagreb (3-0 agg.)
Slavia Prague 4-3 AET Sevilla (6-5 agg.)
Villarreal 2-1 Zenit St. Petersburg (5-2 agg.)