Hoffenheim edge Istanbul Basaksehir 3-1 in UEFA Europa League

Source: Xinhua| 2017-10-20 05:32:19|Editor: Mu Xuequan
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BERLIN, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- Hoffenheim recorded their first-ever win in Europe after moving 3-1 past Istanbul Basaksehir in UEFA Europa League's group stage on Thursday.

Second half goals from Benjamin Huebner, Nadiem Amiri and Nico Schulz helped Hoffenheim to secure the first victory in Group C against harmless visitors from Turkey, who scored their late consolation through Stefano Napoleoni.

Both sides started highly motivated into the encounter and exchanged offensive actions on both ends of the pitch in the early stages.

As the match progressed, Hoffenheim gained the upper hand but they missed the chance to break the deadlock as Sandro Wagner squandered a couple of promising opportunities before the break.

After the restart, the hosts started where they left off and rewarded their efforts as Benjamin Huebner headed home Kerem Demirbay's assist to open the scoring with 52 minutes played.

The Bundesliga side kept it bowling whereas Basaksehir struggled to gain a foothold into the encounter. Hence, the hosts doubled the lead through Nadiem Amiri, who unleashed a volley hammer following a cross from Demirbay seven minutes later.

Basaksehir remained dangerous yet they were unable to produce clear-cut opportunities while Hoffenheim staged a clinical chance conversion as Nico Schulz drilled the ball past goalkeeper Mert Guenok to make it 3-0 on the scoreboards in the 75th minute.

The 3-0 deficit seemed to be a wakening call for the visitors as Mehmet Batdal's header missed the target just wide before Kerim Frei rattled the woodwork with his long-range effort in the closing period.

The visitor's efforts paid off in the dying second of the games as Stefano Napoleoni danced through Hoffenheim's defence to reduce the arrears to 3-1 from the edge of the box.

With the result, Hoffenheim wrapped up their first triumph in Europe after five attempts meanwhile Basaksehir wait for their first win in Group C.

Ludogrets remain atop the standings in Group C followed by Braga, Hoffenheim and winless Basaksehir.

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