Europa League Results: Lyon, Aston Villa & Plzeň Advance – Full Roundup

Lyon secured their place in the next round of competition with a thrilling 4-2 victory over PAOK Soluň, despite resting star forward Pavel Šulc due to a minor injury. The French side overcame an early deficit to claim the win, showcasing their attacking depth.

PAOK took the lead after 20 minutes through Jakumakis, capitalizing on Lyon’s early struggles to break down their defense, with Tiftis getting the nod in goal over Jiří Pavlenku. However, Lyon responded strongly with a brace from 17-year-old Himbert and Merah, marking their first goals for the club.

The match took a dramatic turn when Konstantelias was sent off for PAOK in the 40th minute, leaving them to play with ten men. Despite the numerical disadvantage, PAOK managed to equalize, but Lyon ultimately had the last laugh. Karabec had a chance to put Lyon ahead from the penalty spot, but his effort hit the crossbar. He redeemed himself late in stoppage time, setting up fellow youngster, 17-year-old Englishman Gomes, for the decisive fourth goal.

Aston Villa also advanced, but fielded a rotated squad in their 3-2 win against Salzburg, having already clinched their spot. Manager Emery made six changes to the lineup that won against Newcastle on Sunday. The reshuffled defense faced challenges, with Konaté of Ivory Coast and Yeo of Mali taking advantage to find the back of the net. Villa, however, rallied to secure the victory and maintain their second-place standing.

Midtjylland finished third in the group, progressing to the next stage after navigating three qualifying rounds. They boasted the competition’s most potent attack with 18 goals, and continued their scoring form with a 2-0 win over Zagreb, despite being without the injured Adam Gabriel.

AS Roma’s winning streak came to an end in a 1-1 draw against Panathinaikos, a result that could see the Greek side become Viktoria Plzeň’s next opponent. Roma were reduced to ten men early on with the dismissal of Mancini, and Panathinaikos capitalized through Taborda. However, Ziólkowski leveled the score for Roma, keeping them in eighth place.

Bologna, featuring Martin Vitík in their starting lineup after returning from injury, defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv 3-0 on neutral ground in Serbia. Goals from Rowe, Orsolini, and Pobega secured the win, but weren’t enough to propel them into the direct qualification spots.

Deventer’s goalkeeper, Horníček, had a quiet evening as the home side, already eliminated, failed to register a shot on target. Braga also struggled to create chances, with a large fireworks display causing a delay to the start of the second half providing the most excitement for the fans.

Ferencváros Budapešť, previously unbeaten, suffered a 4-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest, dropping them out of the top eight. An own goal opened the scoring, with Igor Jesus adding a brace for the hosts. Freiburg also tasted defeat for the first time, drawing 1-1 with Lille after Eggestein was sent off, with Giroud converting a late penalty. Plzeň emerged as the only team to navigate the group stage undefeated.

Celtic Glasgow defeated Utrecht 4-2, securing their place in the knockout round. This means Tomáš Čvančara, recently on loan from Mönchengladbach, will feature in February’s first round of the playoffs. Nygren, an own goal, and a penalty converted by Engels put Celtic in control within the first 20 minutes.

Ludogorec’s Serbian forward Stanič emerged as the competition’s top scorer, his seventh goal in the match against Nice keeping the Bulgarian champions in contention. Filip Kaloč was an unused substitute for Ludogorec, but their campaign continues.

Stuttgart dominated Young Boys Bern 5-1 last season, and quickly took a 2-0 lead in the eighth minute this time around. However, the Swiss side, with Dominik Pech on the bench, fought back to equalize before Stuttgart ultimately secured a 3-2 victory, narrowly avoiding elimination.

Feyenoord Rotterdam will not be continuing in the competition. Manager Van Persie, a 2002 UEFA Cup winner with the club, couldn’t guide his team through the group stage, as they lost 1-2 to Betis Sevilla – their sixth defeat of the campaign.

Glasgow Rangers also face elimination, failing to replicate their quarter-final run from last season. They took an early lead through Gassama in Porto, but conceded three goals in 15 minutes and ultimately fell to a 3-1 defeat. Several teams who had hoped for Champions League qualification also saw their European journeys end, including Štýrský Hradec, Salzburg, FCSB, and Nice. Malmö, who eliminated Sigma Olomouc in a previous round, finished second-to-last.