Champions League exit?

Sturm Graz visits Lille – LIVE from 18:45

In the end, Lille prevailed against Sturm Graz.

(Bild: AP ( via APA) Austria Presse Agentur/ASSOCIATED PRESS)

An end with horror! Sturm Graz were unable to reward themselves for their spirited performance on matchday 6 of the Champions League. On the road at LOSC Lille, the Styrians first overturned a 2-0 deficit and then even pushed for the opening goal. However, Hakon Arnar Haraldsson scored a spectacular goal in the 81st minute to give the home side a 3-2 victory.

Despite a respectable second half, Sturm Graz were beaten 3-2 (1:2) at OSC Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday. Already 2-0 down in the first 45 minutes and actually without a chance, Otar Kiteishvili (45.+4) and Mika Biereth (47) staged a comeback in the last competitive game of the year with a double strike and a fairly open second half, in which the decision was only made in the final minute by "joker" Hakon Haraldsson (81).

Jakob Jantscher watches the game in the stadium.

(Bild: kmm)

Osame Sahraoui (37) and Mitchel Bakker (45.+1) had previously scored for the French side. Two weeks after picking up their first point in the 1-0 home win over Girona, Sturm failed to score for the second time in their sixth appearance in the top flight. In any case, their chances of promotion are now purely mathematical. Atalanta Bergamo (21st/away) and RB Leipzig (29th/home) still await the team from Graz in January.

Sturm mainly ran after the ball in the first half at the Stade Pierre Mauroy. Even without the injured attacker Edon Zhegrova, the playful and confident hosts had their fun, but for a long time they could only be accused of failing to take their chances. Sturm were extremely passive, especially in the first 20 minutes, and were lucky that Jonathan David was unable to deal with a Stangl pass in the five-man box or that Remy Cabella shot just wide of the far corner (6').

Penalty against Sturm not given
A penalty for a foul on Sahraoui by Niklas Geyrhofer was withdrawn by Bulgarian referee Kabakov after a VAR review (17'), and just under a quarter of an hour later David missed a real spot-kick from close range (30'). It took until the 37th minute for Sahraoui to finish off a quick move with a shot into the far corner without much resistance from the Blacks. When Bakker added to his tally in first-half stoppage time, the game almost seemed to be over.

However, Sturm struck back out of nowhere in the person of Kiteishvili before the break. The Georgian was lucky to get on the end of a cross and slammed the ball into the top corner of the net from a few meters out. The Styrians, who had only had two or three tentative shots on goal up to that point, were suddenly back in the game - and took the momentum with them from the break.

Momentum suddenly on Sturm's side
Less than two minutes after the restart, Biereth slotted home after a good ball recovery and one-two with William Böving-Kiteishvili. The morale boost was clearly visible on the pitch. Sturm were now higher up the pitch and kept putting Lille, who looked somewhat helpless, under pressure. The best opportunity came when Kiteishvili's long-range attempt missed the far corner (63').

Sturm fought back strongly after trailing 2-0.

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

However, Lille once again had the better chances. Luckily for Sturm, the imprecise David once again failed to score (61') and Bakker was denied by goalkeeper Daniil Khudjakov (71'). Haraldsson, who had come on as a substitute shortly beforehand, finally ensured a not undeserved victory for the home side, who thus remained in the promotion race.