Estonian champions Flora Tallinn will travel to Wales with a slender advantage after defeating The New Saints 1-0 in the first leg of their UEFA Conference League second qualifying round tie at A. Le Coq Arena.
Flora were the better side for much of the evening and created enough opportunities to win by a wider margin, but Remo Valdmets’ first-half goal proved to be the only difference between the two teams.
The hosts began positively and threatened early through Sander Alamaa and Rauno Sappinen, although The New Saints also showed their danger when Jordan Williams forced goalkeeper Evert Grünvald into a save from an effort heading towards the top corner.
Flora gradually began to take control and opened the scoring in the 31st minute. Valdmets fought for possession near the edge of the penalty area before finding space around 15 metres from goal and guiding a composed finish into the bottom corner.
The Estonian champions came close to doubling their advantage before half-time. Danil Kuraksin fired narrowly wide, while Sergei Zenjov also missed the target following a corner. The best opportunity fell to Valdmets after an excellent through ball from Tony Varjund, but TNS goalkeeper Nathan Shepperd denied him in a one-on-one situation.
Valdmets had another golden chance shortly after the restart following good work from Sappinen, but Shepperd again produced an important save from close range. Flora continued to push for a second goal, with Alamaa and Sander Tovstik both trying their luck from distance.
Substitute Taaniel Usta was also denied from close range in the 68th minute as Flora failed to turn their dominance into a more comfortable lead.
The complexion of the match changed during the closing stages as The New Saints began to apply greater pressure. Ben Clark saw a dangerous attempt blocked by Ilja Antonov, while the Welsh champions came closest to equalising from a set-piece when a close-range effort struck the crossbar.
Flora managed to withstand the late pressure and saw out the final minutes to secure a valuable clean sheet. However, the hosts may feel they should be travelling to Wales with a larger advantage after passing up several opportunities to add to their lead.
The return leg will take place next week in Wales, with Flora holding a narrow 1-0 advantage as they look to progress to the third qualifying round.
Flora Tallinn vs The New Saints – 1-0 (1-0)
Goal: Valdmets 31′
