Club Brugge head coach Ivan Leko has expressed his disappointment after it was confirmed that Super Eagles midfielder Raphael Onyedika will miss the second leg of their play-off clash, Soccernet.ng reports.
Blauw-Zwart welcomed Ademola Lookman’s Atletico Madrid to the Jan Breydelstadion, and the match-up was a spectacle to neutrals of the football game.
Diego Simeone’s men took the lead inside eight minutes after Julian Alvarez converted his spot kick from twelve yards, leaving Simon Mignolet rooted to the spot.
Ademola Lookman doubled the lead at the end of the first half, tapping home from a corner kick before Club Brugge rose from the phoenix.
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Raphael Onyedika pulled one back for Club Brugge seven minutes after the restart, and the Super Eagles star was involved again in the second goal, giving the pre-assist for Nicolo Tresoldi’s strike.
The ex-Midtjylland midfielder turned provider for Club Brugge’s Christos Tzolis in the 89th minute, drawing Ivan Leko’s side level ahead of the second leg at the Riyadh Air Metroplitano next week.
Club Brugge head coach bemoans Onyedika suspension
Despite not securing a win in front of their home crowd, Club Brugge’s coach was pleased with how his side overturned a two-goal deficit.
“I’m very happy, but not with the result. If you are 0-2 behind at halftime against such a team, you know that it can be 0-3 or 0-4.
“But when you see with what mentality and fighting spirit the players came out of the dressing room, that was very handsome.
“On that basis alone, we deserved a better result. Every coach would say that, with a 0-2 record, they should continue to believe in it, and it is very nice that they have done so.
“Many players would leave their heads hanging, because you know it’s against a team that are specialists in the transition and can punish that very well. But the players have continued to believe in themselves and in each other, successfully,” the 48-year-old said in quotes revealed by Club Brugge’s official website.
Onyedika picked up a yellow card in the 79th minute and, as such, will miss the second leg in Spain next week.
“We don’t have another Rapha, so we’re going to have to find another solution. But that’s for next week, now we have to focus on our league match next Saturday first. Then the focus goes to the return match.
“We have confidence in our football and believe that we can achieve a result there,” the Croatian concluded.
Club Brugge are currently third on the Jupiler Pro League, three points behind league leaders Union St. Gilloise.
