Lithuanian head coach Valdas Dambrauskas etched his name into Baltic football history on Tuesday evening, becoming the first coach from the Baltic states to lead a club into the UEFA Champions League league phase after Sabah produced a stunning comeback to eliminate Israeli champions Hapoel Be’er Sheva 6-4 on aggregate.
In one of the most dramatic nights in Azerbaijani football history, Sabah overturned a first-leg deficit despite two costly goalkeeping errors that gifted Hapoel Be’er Sheva goals, eventually prevailing 5-2 after extra time in front of more than 20,000 jubilant supporters.
For the 49-year-old Lithuanian, it was a moment of redemption. Dambrauskas had previously come within one step of the Champions League while in charge of Ludogorets, only to lose 2-3 on aggregate to Malmö in the play-off round. This time, he completed the journey, achieving what few believed was possible before the season began.
After ending Qarabag’s long domestic dominance last season to deliver Sabah the Azerbaijani league title, Dambrauskas arrived at the second leg trailing 1-2 from last week’s first meeting against the Israeli champions.
The evening could hardly have begun worse for the hosts. Hapoel Be’er Sheva thought they had taken the lead inside three minutes, only for VAR to rule the goal out. The warning went unheeded, however, as just seven minutes later a disastrous goalkeeping mistake handed the visitors the opening goal, extending their aggregate advantage to 3-1.
Sabah refused to panic and responded with wave after wave of attacks. Their persistence was rewarded in the 38th minute when Nigerian forward Christian Nwachukwu levelled the score on the night, reigniting belief among the home supporters.
The Azerbaijani champions continued to dominate after the break and twice struck the woodwork, but another catastrophic goalkeeping error left them with an even steeper mountain to climb. In the 61st minute, Kazakhstan international goalkeeper Stas Pokatilov attempted to release the ball quickly after collecting a corner but rolled it directly into the path of Guy Mizrahi outside the penalty area. The Israeli defender accepted the gift, firing into the empty net to restore Hapoel Be’er Sheva’s two-goal aggregate cushion.
Many teams would have collapsed after conceding in such fashion. Sabah did the opposite. They threw everything forward and found another breakthrough in the 74th minute when Uzbekistan midfielder Umarali Rakhmonaliyev drilled a superb strike from around 18 metres to make it 2-2 on the night.
With time running out and energy levels fading, the hosts desperately searched for the goal that would force extra time. Deep into stoppage time, they earned one final corner, sending goalkeeper Pokatilov forward in a last gamble. The set-piece was worked short in a cleverly rehearsed routine before substitute Orphe Mbina was left completely unmarked at the far post, where the Gabonese striker thundered a first-time volley into the roof of the net to spark wild celebrations and level the tie at 4-4 on aggregate.
The momentum had completely shifted. Extra time swung even further in Sabah’s favour in the 100th minute when Hapoel Be’er Sheva centre-back Djibril Thialaw Diop received his second yellow card of the evening. Ironically, his first booking had come moments before the end of the second half for kicking the ball away to waste time.
With the visitors reduced to ten men, Sabah capitalised immediately. Aleksey Isayev delivered a dangerous free-kick into the box, where Mbina once again rose highest to head home and put the Azerbaijani champions ahead on aggregate for the first time since the opening half of the first leg.
Joy-Lance Mickels completed the unforgettable night in the 115th minute, sealing a remarkable 5-2 victory with Sabah’s fifth goal and confirming the club’s place in the UEFA Champions League league phase for the first time in its history. It also marks Sabah’s first-ever appearance in the main stage of any UEFA club competition.
For Dambrauskas, who just a few years ago guided champions in both Lithuania and Latvia, the achievement is historic. He becomes the first Lithuanian – and the first coach from any Baltic nation – to lead a club into the UEFA Champions League league phase as a head coach.
Sabah will discover their eight Champions League opponents when the league phase draw takes place on Thursday.
