The second matchday of the Europa League main stage was a true test of strength for Ukrainian footballers: on a single matchday, several Ukrainian representatives took to European pitches, and their fates turned out differently. Some helped their team secure a confident victory, others experienced disappointing episodes with goals disallowed after VAR reviews, and some failed to save their teams from defeat in the very final moments of the game. Let's break down the key matches of the matchday involving Ukrainians.
Two disallowed goals: Tuterov and Yaremchuk left without legal strikes
The most frustrating evening went to Sunderland winger Timur Tuterov, who made his career debut in the starting lineup for a European competition match. The Ukrainian played the full 90 minutes against Portugal's Torreense and hit the opponent's net in the first half. However, following a VAR intervention, the goal was ruled out for offside. Despite the disallowed goal, the English team secured a 2:1 victory.
An almost identical story happened to Olympiacos striker Roman Yaremchuk in the match against France's Marseille. The Ukrainian started the game and scored at the end of the first half by following up on a rebound, but this goal was also disallowed due to an offside in one of the attacking phases. Yaremchuk left the pitch in the 67th minute, having completed 14 accurate passes, made 46 ball touches, and won seven duels. Olympiacos still won — 1:0.
Benfica routs Celtic with two Ukrainians in the starting lineup
The highest-scoring match of the matchday featuring Ukrainians was the encounter between Benfica and Scottish side Celtic, which ended 4:1. Goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin and midfielder Heorhiy Sudakov started simultaneously for the Portuguese club. Trubin played the entire match and made five saves, keeping a clean sheet until the 63rd minute when Camilo Durán reduced the deficit. Sudakov played until the 64th minute: he recorded two shots on target, five key passes, and an 89% pass accuracy (33 out of 37). In the 48th minute, he had a chance to score, but his close-range shot was blocked by a defender.
Sikan’s late appearance fails to save Anderlecht
The only Ukrainian to come on as a substitute in this matchday was forward Danylo Sikan. He entered the pitch for Belgian side Anderlecht in the 77th minute of the match against Dinamo Zagreb, but could not turn the tide. In the 90+4th minute, the Belgians conceded from a penalty and lost 0:1.
Standings in the league table
Thanks to their second consecutive victory, Benfica earned six points in the Europa League main round and climbed to second place in the standings. Only Bayer, who have not conceded a single goal after two matchdays, sit higher. Thus, the second matchday of the main stage proved to be a mixed bag for Ukrainians: team victories, disallowed goals, and a dramatic late defeat all painted the picture of this matchday.
