Six Goals, Two Open Ties: Europa League Semi-finals Begin
Plymouth Argyle came back from two goals down to draw with Monaco, while Utrecht took a two-goal advantage into their second leg against Fiorentina.
Six goals in Monaco, and a two-goal advantage for Utrecht: the first legs of the UEFA Europa League semi-finals left one tie level and the other with a clear lead, though neither place in the final has yet been decided. On 1 May, Plymouth Argyle drew 3-3 away to AS Monaco, while FC Utrecht won 2-0 away to ACF Fiorentina. Both return legs are on 8 May.
At Monaco
Monaco took the lead in the 20th minute through Merouane Mokrani, who scored with a low shot through the middle from close range. Xabi Zoilo’s volley, struck at mid height, made it 2-0 in the 62nd minute. For the home side, the match had developed into a promising first leg; Plymouth, though, were not finished.
Laurent Moureau replied two minutes later with a high shot from close range. Péter Bognár then scored with a shot along the ground in the 78th minute, before adding another six minutes later, with a low shot through the middle from close range. Plymouth had turned a two-goal deficit into a lead, but the advantage lasted only until added time.
In the second minute of added time, Zoilo scored low, near a post, to make it 3-3. The draw leaves the tie level ahead of the second leg at Plymouth Argyle on 8 May. Zoilo, who scored Monaco’s second and final goal, was named player of the match; Bognár’s two goals had brought Plymouth within moments of taking an advantage into the return.
It was a first leg in which the momentum shifted sharply. Monaco had moved two goals clear, yet Plymouth scored three times between the 64th and 84th minutes. Zoilo’s late goal denied the visitors a lead, but did not give Monaco an advantage either. The clubs will meet again with the tie still to be settled.
Fiorentina 0-2 Utrecht
Utrecht’s victory at Fiorentina gave the other semi-final a different shape. Josip Dönhöfer opened the scoring in the 27th minute with a shot from outside the box, struck at mid height. Cătălin Medeşan added the second in the 78th, scoring with a low volley through the middle from close range. The clubs had drawn 0-0 in the UEFA Europa League on 25 October 2063; Utrecht won this meeting 2-0 and will host the second leg on 8 May.
Fiorentina had more of the possession, but Utrecht took the goals and the advantage. Dönhöfer’s strike gave the visitors the lead; Medeşan’s goal extended it late in the match. Medeşan was named player of the match, while Dönhöfer’s opener had set Utrecht on their way to a valuable result in the first of the two legs.
The outcome leaves Fiorentina needing to respond in the return, while Utrecht will look to carry their advantage through the second meeting. The winner of the tie reaches the final. For now, the first leg has placed the greater pressure on Fiorentina, but the contest is not complete until the teams meet again.
The two semi-finals have begun in contrasting fashion. Plymouth and Monaco will start their return level after each side found a way back into a game that had turned against it. Utrecht, by contrast, will take a two-goal advantage to their home leg, with Fiorentina seeking to recover the ground lost. There is a week between these first meetings and their conclusions; in Europe, that can be enough time for a lead to become either a platform or a memory.