PAOK see off Spartak Moscow to edge closer to Champions League
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE - 3RD QUALIFYING ROUND (LEG 2)
| Spartak Moscow | 0 - 0 | PAOK |
|---|---|---|
| (2 - 3) Agg. |
PAOK moved a step closer to the Champions League group stage on Tuesday after holding 10-man Spartak Moscow to a goalless draw in Russia to complete a 3-2 aggregate victory and move into the playoffs.
Chances were hard to come by on the night at the Spartak Stadion as PAOK attempted to protect their first leg lead in a tense 3rd qualifying round tie, but the Thessaloniki club still enjoyed the better openings and were well worth the result.
PAOK were helped significantly by the reckless off the ball challenge from Spartak’s Luiz Adriano on defender Jose Crespo after 33 minutes which earned the Brazilian striker a straight red card.
Razvan Lucescu’s PAOK, who are bidding to reach the group stage of Europe’s elite competition for the first time, will now face Portuguese giants Benfica in the playoffs, while Spartak will drop into the Europa League group stage.
Despite coming into the second leg of this tie with a slender advantage, Lucescu insisted his team would not travel to Russia to park the bus, and he made good on his promise.
Because although PAOK were content to defend for long spells of the match as the Russians tried to play their way through the PAOK defence, as the game wore on the visitors were more dangerous on the counter attack,and whenever they enjoyed a sustained spell of pressure.
Midfielder Dimitris Pelkas was once again impressive throughout for PAOK, with his intelligent passing and direct running causing the home side problems. The Greece international also came closest to scoring for PAOK with a couple of second half chances just after the hour mark.
Fellow midfielder Amir Warda was also denied a great scoring chance when his shot was blocked after 54 minutes, while PAOK’s Serbian striker Aleksandar Prijovic also came close to scoring in the first half, but his effort was just off target.
