London, Feb 14: José Mourinho’s Fenerbahce might have only just squeezed into the Europa League knockout playoff round but it is already on the brink of the round of 16.
Fenerbahce dominated to beat Anderlecht 3-0 on Thursday and take a comprehensive lead to Belgium for the second leg next week.
Two of Mourinho’s former clubs, Porto and Roma, drew 1-1 in Europe’s second-tier competition.
Fenerbahce only just reached the playoffs by placing 24th in the new 36-standings format – the last qualification place, and on a tiebreaker of goal difference. Anderlecht had finished 10th, only missing out on automatic progression to the last-16 by goal difference.
Fenerbahce took the lead in the 11th minute Thursday. Anderlecht failed to clear a corner and the ball was put back to the area where Yusuf Akçiçek nodded it on for Dusan Tadic to head into the net.
Edin Dzeko doubled his team’s advantage shortly before halftime following good work from Filip Kostic down the left flank. Dzeko’s initial shot was blocked by Anderlecht defender Lucas Hey but the veteran forward fired home the rebound.
Youssef En-Nesyri added a third with a powerful header in the 57th minute and Fenerbahce missed several chances to extend its advantage.
Notably, Yusuf Akçiçek’s header was deflected onto the post – it would have been the 19-year-old’s first career goal, after recording his first-ever assist in the first half.
Dutch club AZ Alkmaar also has a healthy advantage to take into next week’s second leg after it beat 10-man Galatasaray 4-1.
Dybala injured
Key Roma forward Paulo Dybala limped off in the first half of the match in Portugal with a knee injury.
Dybala had yelled out in agony when his knee felt the full force of Porto midfielder Alan Varela’s boot in the 20th minute but the Argentina World Cup winner had played on for another 15 minutes before admitting defeat.
Roma took the lead with practically the last kick of the first half, with defender Zeki Celik scoring his first goal for the club.
Porto leveled against the run of play in the 67th minute through Francisco Moura’s deflected shot.
Roma midfielder Bryan Cristante was sent off five minutes later following a second booking.
Teenager scores for Ajax
Ajax won 2-0 at Union Saint-Gilloise, with 16-year-old Jorthy Mokio netting his side’s second goal.
Mokio scored in the 71st minute. A corner was cleared but only as far as the Belgium Under-21 international on the edge of the area and he volleyed it in for his first goal for the senior Ajax team.
Mokio, aged 16 years and 350 days, became the youngest player to score in a knockout stage match in the Europa League, UEFA said.
Christian Rasmussen had netted the opener in 59th.
Elsewhere, Real Sociedad won 2-1 at Midtjylland and Ferencvaros beat Viktoria Plzen 1-0. Romanian team FCSB came from behind to win 2-1 at PAOK and a stoppage-time penalty saw Twente beat Bodo/Glimt by the same scoreline.
Sixteen-year-old Michael Noonan netted on his Shamrock Rovers debut to help the Irish team win 1-0 at 10-man Molde.
That made Noonan, at 16 years, 197 days, the youngest-ever goalscorer in a European club competition, his team said.
Noonan scored from close range in the 57th minute. He also forced a red card for Molde defender Valdemar Lund for a last-man foul, three minutes before halftime.
Víkingur Reykjavík became the first-ever Icelandic club to win a European knockout match by upsetting Panathinaikos 2-1. The match was held in Helsinki as no stadium in Iceland met the requirements to host the game. Armandas Kucys scored twice but also missed a late penalty as Celje drew 2-2 against 10-man APOEL. Jagiellonia won 3-1 at TSC.
Fenerbahce’s emphatic 3-0 victory over Anderlecht has put Mourinho’s men in firm control of their Europa League knockout playoff tie, while young talents like Jorthy Mokio and Michael Noonan etched their names into the record books with historic goals.
As the competition heats up, injuries like Paulo Dybala’s could shape the fate of contenders, while surprise results—such as Víkingur Reykjavík’s milestone win—highlight the unpredictability of European football.
With second-leg clashes looming, the race for a spot in the last 16 remains wide open. (AP)
