Already winning 1-3 in the first leg, Antwerp left no doubt about their qualification for the Conference League play-offs by beating Lillestrom 2-0 on Thursday with goals from Anthony Valencia (11th) and Birger Verstraete (66th). To compete in the pools, the Antwerp club will have to eliminate Basksehir (go to Turkey on August 18, return on August 25). Winner 1-3 on the road, the Turkish club beat Icelanders Breidablik 3-0 on Thursday.
For this return match, Mark Van Bommel established for the first time Anthony Valencia and preferred Michael Frey at Vincent Janssen In tip. However, Geir Bakke, who bet on the defensive, completely changed his team. The Norwegian coach did not have to wait long to realize that this device was not reliable since on a cross pass from Radja NaiggolanValencia beat Vetle Dragsnes before placing the ball in the opposite corner from a difficult angle (11th, 1-0).
After thanking his manager for his confidence, Valencia looked like he could score again on a deep run, but the young Ecuadorian, 19, missed his control and couldn’t surprise Mads Christiansen (21st). If the time had come to waste as little energy as possible, Antwerp inherited a great opportunity wasted by Pieter Gerkenswhich had cleverly arisen on a cross from Valencia (33rd).
At half-time, Van Bommel preserved Michel Ange Balikishareplacing it with Victor Fisher (46th). To improve his offensive performance, the Norwegian coach released Marius Lundemo et Ylldren Ibrahimaj pour Ifeanyi Mathew et Magnus Knudsen (46th). After Valencia, launched in depth by Radja Nainggolan, sent the ball to the side of the goal, the level of the meeting dropped (49th). As the Antwerp supporters were expecting a small number from one of their players, Van Bommel gave three players a breather at the same time: Frey, Gerkens and Nainggolan gave way to Janssen, Arthur Vermeeren, who was making his first team debut and at Verstraete (59th). With a whim, the latter assured the Antwerpers a success, which was expected given the lack of initiative from their Norwegian opponents (69th).
