Recap of Thursday football action

Yesterday was an action packed football day, with lots of interesting cup games being played. The main tournament was of course the UEFA Europa League with its 28 third round qualification matches. Several big names were involved, and the likes of Borussia Dortmund, Southampton and Athletic Club all won their matches, giving them a decent advantage for the second leg next week. Southampton has a comfortable lead after winning 3-0, all in all a great performance at home against Ronald Koeman’s former club Vitesse. The biggest shock of the evening came in Italy though, as Sampdoria lost 0-4 at home to the Serbian side Vojvodina. But also West Ham struggled, managing only a 2-2 draw at home to Astra Giurgiu from Romania. West Ham was leading 2-0, but Astra made the most of the red card given to James Collins in the 59th minute and scored in the 71st and 82nd minute.

Many of the biggest clubs were still abroad preparing for their domestic leagues. In North America, Manchester United faced Paris Saint Germain in the Champions Cup show matches. The French won the match 2-0 after goals by Matuidi and Ibrahimovic, securing them the first place of the table.

In China, but also part of the Champions Cup show, Real Madrid and AC Milan played a goalless draw. With only three teams in that cup, Real Madrid ended in first position as they beat Inter earlier. For Inter, this pre-season buildup was not that successful as they lost 0-1 to Milan and 0-3 to Real Madrid.

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