CSKA Sofia 0 St Patrick’s Athletic 1
Serge Atakayi was the match-winner at Natsionalen Stadion Vasil Levski last night as his 87th-minute goal earned St Patrick’s Athletic a superb 1-0 away victory over CSKA Sofia in the first leg of a UEFA Europa Conference League third round qualifier.
Recruited to the Inchicore club only last month, Atakayi — a former Finland underage international — emerged from the bench to earn the Premier Division side a big scalp against their much-fancied Bulgarian counterparts. Tim Clancy’s men now find themselves in pole position for a spot in the play-off rounds in advance of next Thursday’s return leg at Tallaght Stadium.
This game will take place at the ground of league rivals Shamrock Rovers in order to facilitate UEFA’s requirements that games in this round are played in stadiums with a minimum seating capacity requirement of 4,500. The Saints’ home turf of Richmond Park has a current seating capacity of just under 3,000, making it unsuitable for a fixture of this magnitude.
Sofia will undoubtedly have a point to prove when the two sides renew acquaintances in South Dublin, but St Pat’s will be significantly buoyed following yesterday’s result.
Starting with the same eleven that defeated NŠ Mura of Slovenia on penalties in the previous round seven days earlier, the Saints frustrated Sofia in a largely cagey opening half. Despite the disappointment of an FAI Cup exit to First Division outfit Waterford last Sunday, Pat’s were comfortable in their defensive shape (Joe Redmond was excellent throughout) and never looked overawed by the occasion.
There was an opportunity for the hosts just past the half-hour mark when Maurício Garcez cut inside from the left-wing and eyed up the target, but Saints netminder Joseph Anang gathered his right-footed strike at the second time of asking.
Although Sofia midfielder Amos Youga also had a shot from distance, it was ultimately wayward and the deadlock remained unbroken at the interval.
Pat’s grew in confidence as the second period action progressed and Chris Forrester was agonisingly close to making a telling connection to Anto Breslin’s 51st-minute free-kick. Saints frontman Eoin Doyle subsequently smashed the crossbar from close-range, though he was eventually flagged for offside.
While a raft of substitutions added energy to the Sofia challenge, Pat’s were increasingly finding space inside the final third. Billy King and Doyle were narrowly off-target in quick succession for the Saints, before Atakayi produced the defining moment of the game in the dying minutes of the play.
After chasing down Asen Donchev’s weak header, the former Rangers attacker got to the ball in advance of advancing CSKA custodian Gustavo Busatto and proceeded to fire home his first goal for the club.
There were a couple of late scares for the Saints — Anang was at full stretch to turn over a Jonathan Lindseth header and Sofia had a penalty claim turned down — but they ultimately came away with the bragging rights in the first of two meetings with the Bulgarians.
CSKA Sofia: Busatto; Donchev, Petrov, Mattheij, De Nooijer; Vion (Lindseth, 60 mins), Youga (Geferson, 76 mins), Shopov; Garcez, Nazon (Bamba, 60 mins), Tufegdžić (Yomov, 46 mins).
St Patrick’s Athletic: Anang; Brockbank (Curtis, 74 mins), Grivosti, Redmond; Cotter, O’Reilly, Lennon, Forrester, Breslin; E Doyle (Coughlan, 94 mins), King (Atakayi, 81 mins).
Referee: M Schuettengruber (Austria).
