48.
19:53
Torreira lies on the ground with pain in the center circle. He took Diogo Gonçalves’ knee in his backside. He needs to be treated.
46.
19:52
Angeliño stops a long ball and puts it in the center to Mertens, who is in a promising position in the penalty area. But then he starts dribbling and loses the ball instead of shooting.
46.
19:50
The game is running again! Both teams continue to play unchanged.
46.
19:49
Kick-off of the 2nd half
45.
19:38
Half-time conclusion:
Then it’s break! FC Copenhagen leads 1-0 against Galatasaray Istanbul after a lively 45 minutes. The hosts started the game really well and had numerous opportunities to take the lead. Kerem Aktürkoğlu alone had three really good chances. The home team should have made more of it here. Over time, Copenhagen became more and more confident and dared to go on the offensive. And it came as it had to come. Gala lost one time in defense and Mohamed Elyounoussi took advantage of it. The lead is a bit flattering, but Copenhagen are ice cold in front of the goal.
45.
19:35
End of 1st half
45.
19:35
Muslera has to go again! Elyounoussi stabs forward again on the left side and then pokes the ball from the baseline back to Larsson. However, Muslera was able to parry his left-footed shot from the left position from 16 meters.
45.
19:33
The guests now appear completely different in defense and play with a completely different self-image. Of course, that doesn’t make things any easier for Gala.
45.
19:32
Official injury time (minutes): 2
45.
19:32
We are in the last seconds of the first half. Gala is visibly affected by this goal. The last decisive pass is now missing.
42.
19:29
Meling and Ziyech collide in the center circle. The referee immediately calls in the doctors for Ziyech because his head hit Meling.
39.
19:26
Yellow card for Hakim Ziyech (Galatasaray)
Ziyech with a foul on Meling. Then he complains too much to the assistant and sees yellow.
38.
19:25
Gala seems a bit shocked after this very surprising 0:1.
36.
19:23
The goal was still checked by the VAR. At the very beginning of the situation, Larsson could have been offside. But that wasn’t the case.
35.
19:21
Tooor for FC København, 0-1 by Mohamed Elyounoussi
That’s incredible! If you don’t take advantage of the chances at the front, you’ll get them at the back. Gala is completely stuck in defense. Lerager can head a Jelert cross to the far post unchallenged in the penalty area to Elyounoussi. He can even receive the ball from six meters and then finish with his left. Muslera still gets close to his shot, but can no longer prevent it from hitting the top right.
34.
19:20
The atmosphere in the stadium is now a little less loud. Also because Galatasaray is doing a little less at the moment.
31.
19:17
A Demirbay corner from the right can once again be punched out by Grabara.
30.
19:16
We see a really entertaining and interesting game here! Istanbul only has to be blamed for not having scored a goal from their many chances.
28.
19:14
Ziyech crosses from the right wing with his left into the middle. However, the cross ball lands directly in Grabara’s arms.
27.
19:13
Referee Kabakov’s watch needs to be replaced. His fourth official helps him out. After a short interruption, the ball rolls again.
24.
19:12
Aktürkoğlu hits the crossbar! As soon as it was written, Copenhagen started having problems again with the pressure from the home team. But not because Gala is so aggressive, but because the Danish defenders more or less gave the ball away. Aktürkoğlu is put in a great position and can shoot from the edge of the penalty area. He circles the powerful right-footed shot too much and only hits the crossbar. Lucky for the Danes!
24.
19:10
The Scandinavian guests are now coming into the game better and are no longer putting too much pressure on themselves from Galatasaray.
21.
19:08
Mertens leaves his leg against Meling on the left sideline. Diogo Gonçalves takes the free kick into the box. There the Gala defenders can easily clear the ball.
19.
19:06
Now the Danes dare to take the ball into the hosts’ half. At the end of the long ball relay, Elyounoussi takes a corner kick. Diogo Gonçalves then brings the ball far too short and Mertens clears it.
17.
19:04
Aktürkoğlu with the next great opportunity! Icardi attracts three opponents in the penalty area and can pass the ball back to Aktürkoğlu. But he is far too hectic when finishing and aims past the goal from seven meters to the left. The 1-0 win here is slowly overdue.
16.
19:03
Ziyech with a solo from the right side to the center. When he arrives centrally, he shoots with his left from 18 meters. Grabara has no problems with the shot.
13.
19:01
Galatasaray calls for a penalty again. This time Icardi is brought down by Diks in the penalty area. But the defender clearly plays the ball and therefore clearly no foul play, that’s how Kabakov sees it too.
12.
18:59
Maybe Lerager’s foul was an attempt to wake up his team. Luckily for Torreira things continue after the foul.
11.
18:58
Yellow card for Lukas Lerager (FC Copenhagen)
Lerager comes much too late against Lucas Torreira and tackles him after he has already played the ball. A rather unnecessary foul by the Dane.
9.
18:56
The next conclusion of the hosts! Icardi can pass to Aktürkoğlu while standing in the penalty area. He shoots directly with his right from 18 meters. However, the ball clearly misses the goal to the right.
7.
18:55
Icardi with a huge chance to make it 1-0! Mertens receives the ball in the center and immediately puts it on the right side in the penalty area to the striker. He doesn’t hesitate for long and takes off with his right foot. However, Grabara in the goal gets a hand on the ball and clears it for a corner.
6.
18:52
What a lively start by the men from the Bosphorus! With the loud fans behind them, the team starts off really strong here. Copenhagen has to acclimatize here first.
4.
18:50
Gala demands a hand penalty! Icardi is sent into the center of the storm with a pass. The ball bounces to the hand of a defender in the penalty area. But at the same moment the assistant’s flag goes up because Icardi was previously just offside.
3.
18:49
However, the Danes are able to clear this corner kick through Kamil Grabara.
2.
18:48
Less than two minutes have been played, Angeliño takes the first corner kick from the left side.
1.
18:47
The game is on! The guests from Denmark toasted.
1.
18:46
Game start
18:44
Before we get started, there will be a minute’s silence for the victims of the severe earthquakes in Morocco and Libya.
18:40
The teams enter the field to loud cheers from the audience. This is followed by the Champions League anthem and the seat selection with captains Fernando Muslera and Rasmus Falk. The referee of the game is from Bulgaria and his name is Georgi Kabakov.
18:24
The current leader of the Danish league, like Gala, had to endure three qualifying rounds, eliminating opponents such as Breidablik Kópavogur (Iceland), Sparta Prague (Czech Republic) and Raków Częstochowa (Poland). Here and today, with Galatasaray and almost 50,000, some hot-blooded, spectators, a completely different caliber awaits Jacob Neestrup’s team. The coach is changing his starting lineup to two positions compared to the last league game against Nordsjaelland (2:2): Lukas Lerager and ex-Schalke player Jordan Larsson replace Roony Bardghji and Orri Óskarsson.
18:15
Now a look into the present. The Turkish champions have strengthened considerably during the summer break. Among others, Angeliño, Tanguy Ndombèlé and Hakim Ziyech moved to the Bosporus. The start of the new season was correspondingly good. Three wins and a draw currently bring coach Okan Buruk’s team into second place behind Fenerbahçe in the domestic league. At the press conference before the game, new signing Angeliño was sure that Gala would have a very strong team on the pitch, also thanks to the good newcomers. In addition, Buruk’s wish is very clear: to reach the round of 16! Compared to last weekend’s clear 4-2 win against Samsunspor, the head coach changed his starting eleven once: Hakim Ziyech moved into the formation for Tetê.
18:01
This duel is not the first time in the history of the competition. Both teams met in the group stage in the 2013/2014 season. In Denmark, the Danes won 1-0, while Gala won 3-1 at home. This season was the last time the Istanbul team made it to the round of 16. Since then, they have been eliminated four times in the group phase or have not qualified at all.
17:53
This encounter is an important one for both teams, considering the other two teams in this group. FC Bayern Munich and Manchester United are certainly the favorites to advance. Third place, which still qualifies for the Europa League round of 16, could be decided between tonight’s two opponents. Gala was last in the top echelon of European football in 2019/2020 and was eliminated as bottom of the group. FC Copenhagen experienced a similar situation last year when they finished at the bottom of the group with just three points. However, that doesn’t mean that the two teams in this group have no chance. Group A promises many exciting and competitive games.
17:28
A warm welcome and a nice Wednesday evening. It’s finally that time again and the Champions League is back! Galatasaray Istanbul welcomes FC Copenhagen to kick off Group A at 6:45 p.m.
