FCI Levadia suffered a heartbreaking exit at the A. Le Coq Arena, falling 1-3 after extra time to Luxembourg champions Differdange and losing 4-5 on aggregate in the UEFA Conference League third qualifying round.
Levadia had travelled home from Luxembourg with a 3-2 advantage from the first leg – a game where Richie Musaba struck twice and Mihkel Ainsalu added one more, while Samir Hadji kept Differdange alive with a brace of his own. Despite the away win, head coach Curro Torres was openly dissatisfied with his side’s performance, and on Thursday evening, his fears proved justified.
In front of 4,063 fans, the first half in Tallinn ended goalless, leaving Levadia still ahead 3-2 on aggregate. Differdange pushed forward after the break, appealing for a possible handball in the box after Iboro’s block, but the referee waved play on.
Then came the gut punch late in the game: in the 89th minute, Buch broke through one-on-one with Karl Andre Vallner and calmly slotted home to level the tie at 3-3 on aggregate. With four minutes of stoppage time failing to produce a winner, the match headed into extra time.
Levadia struck first in the 92nd minute through Bubacarr Tambedou, who raced clear of the defence, rounded veteran goalkeeper Felipe, and finished into an empty net. After a lengthy VAR check, the goal stood – 1-1 on the night, 4-3 on aggregate.
Differdange hit back almost immediately. From a corner, Buch again rose highest to head in, making it 1-2 on the night and 4-4 over the two legs at the midway point of extra time.
The drama only escalated in the second extra-time period. Vallner produced a superb save to deny Abreu, before Levadia’s Iboro received a second yellow card for a foul on the flank.
Moments later, disaster struck: captain Peetson was penalised for a harsh handball inside the box. Hadji stepped up and sent Vallner the wrong way, giving Differdange a 3-1 lead on the night and a 5-4 aggregate advantage.
With time running out, tempers flared – even Differdange’s bench and Levadia manager Curro Torres receiving a red card in the closing minutes – but Levadia couldn’t find the equaliser to force a penalty shoot-out.
Differdange move on, while Levadia’s hopes of reaching the Conference League play-off round end in heartbreak, undone by late goals and extra-time chaos.
FCI Levadia vs Differdange 03 – 1:3 (0:0) 4:5 on aggregate (after ET).
Goals: Tambedou 92′ | Buch 89′ 105+2′, Hadji 119′ (Penalty kick)
LEV: Vallner, Schjonning-Larsen, Peetson, Iboro, Tur (Kaua Davi 98′), Torres, Mavretic, Ainsalu (Tammik 74′), Roosnupp (Kirss 74′), Musaba (Tambedou 84′), Joao Pedro (Agyiri 65′)
DIF: Felipe, D’Anzico, Brusco (Gomes Ricciulli 120+2′), Bedouret (Abreu 72′), Franzoni (El Idrissi 81′), Camara (Jakobi 46′), Borges, Lempereur, Pinto (Rauch 72′), Hadji, Mfoumou (Buch 81′)
