The Pride and Passion of the UEFA Europa League returned on Thursday night for another mouth-watering evening of twists and turns across the continent.
PRIDE OF THE UNDERDOG: DUNDALK
211 places split 15th place Zenit from Dundalk in the UEFA rankings. So the home side was understandably in dreamland when UEFA man-of-the-match Robbie Benson put the team in front shortly after the break. A late turnaround denied the Irish side a historic upset but once again the club more than did itself proud.
MOST PASSIONATE CELEBRATION: AUSTRIA WIEN
Having been victorious in just one of its previous 10 meetings against Italian teams, the Austrians would gladly have settled for a point in Rome ahead of Thursday's showdown. But, after being 3-1 down with just eight minutes remaining, a late double secured a 3-3 draw that felt like a win for the players and their travelling supporters.
PROUDEST PLAYER: GUILLAUME HOARAU (YOUNG BOYS)
Former France international Hoarau has found his sizable feet since joining Swiss giant Young Boys and his remarkable goal=scoring run continued as the 6’4” hitman fired all three goals to seal a comfortable 3-1 victory over APOEL. Hoarau’s heroics ended a run of four European games without win for Young Boys and puts them right back in contention for the knockout stage.
MOST PASSIONATE FANS: SCHALKE 04
Yevhen Konoplyanka picked a fine moment to grab his first goal for Schalke, making it a trip to remember for the fans who travelled over 1,500 miles from Gelsenkirchen to Krasnodar. The Ukraine international and his colleagues gave their dedicated faithful a hearty round of applause for lending their incredible support on a night that ended with the Bundesliga club sitting pretty at the top of Group I.