The fairy tale of a triumph, the story behind a disaster… LASK and Celtic have two very different stories to tell about their matchup, which turned into one of the most unbelievable narratives of the Champions League qualifiers. After all, the Scots’ 3-0 victory in the first leg had seemingly turned the return leg in Austria into a mere formality. And their 1-0 lead seemed to solidify their position even further, as they were already looking ahead to Thursday’s (8/27) draw.
And yet, the 4-0 aggregate score from the two matches was not enough to break LASK’s spirit. With AEK’s Ljubišić scoring one of the goals in the epic comeback, the Austrians tied the score from the first match (4-1) in regulation, and as the icing on the cake, they crushed a desperate Celtic 5-1 in extra time to snatch the ticket to the Champions League group stage.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Ljubišić initially gave the Austrians the lead in the 48th minute, with Anderinan extending the lead to 3-1 ten minutes later. Linz fought hard for that crucial fourth goal and finally found it in the 90th minute with a header by Flecker, sending the match into extra time. It was there that Adeniran’s long-range shot in the 105th minute delivered the knockout blow to Celtic and sent Linzer to the stars, on a night that will be etched forever in the memories of its fans.
*photo source: LASK
