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Conference League qualifying: Linfield prevail against Zalgiris, big sides recover

Linfield celebrate one of their goals in their victory over Zalgiris in Conference League qualifying.
Linfield celebrate one of their goals in their victory over Zalgiris in Conference League qualifying.CHARLES MCQUILLAN / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / Getty Images via AFP
The UEFA Conference League had 50 matches across Tuesday and Thursday as the second qualifying round wrapped up.

Tuesday kicked things off with three matches. The drama from that day came in Georgia, as FCI Levadia Tallinn progressed 3-2 on aggregate over Iberia 1999 after extra time. Substitute Robert Kirss scored the winner four minutes into the second half of the extra period to put the Estonian side into the third qualifying round of a European club competition for the first time since 2009.

Forty-seven of the 50 games were played on Thursday in a very full day of play. Northern Irish club Linfield managed to claim a 2-0 home success over Lithuania's Zalgiris, which was also the final aggregate score. Both goals came in the opening half, where Matthew Fitzpatrick put the 57-time domestic champions ahead inside 10 minutes.

Chris Shields failed to put away a penalty midway through the half, but Kieran Offord gave his side their second 12 minutes before the half. 

After reaching the playoff round or better in each of the Conference League's first three editions, Zalgiris, who failed to have a shot on target in Belfast, have been knocked out at the second qualifying round for the second year running.

Two of the more established names in the round - AZ Alkmaar and Sparta Praha - overcame first leg defeats to move on. The Dutch side prevailed 5-0 over Ilves in their match, winning 8-4 overall. As for Sparta, they moved on past Aktobe with a 4-0 showing thanks to a more convincing second half performance. They progressed 5-2 on aggregate.

The day's craziest match came in Slovenia, where Koper - who lost the first leg 7-0 away to Viking - put out a much more spirited performance at home. In the end, despite leading in the second leg on three separate occasions, the hosts were unable to hold on. Sander Svensson netted a hat-trick to help the Norwegians win 5-3 on the night and 12-3 across the two legs.

Birsent Karagaren's 86th minute equalizer for Bulgaria's Arda saw them force extra time and ultimately penalties versus HJK Helsinki. The visitors, who had never scored in Europe before this match, converted four of their five spot kicks to knock off their Finnish opponents 4-2 in the shootout after a 2-2 draw.

Just as they did in the first qualfiying round, Larne needed a penalty shootout to get past their opponent. This time, it was Kosovo's Prishtina who failed to finish them off. A 1-1 draw on the night - and on aggregate - led to spot kicks.

Although they went behind after the first round of kicks, the Irish Premiership club scored their remaining five to advance 5-4.

Seven matches on the day were decided in extra time. In Belgium, Victor Eriksson's 120th minute goal from a free kick lifted Hammarby to a 2-1 success against Sporting Charleroi

Perhaps the biggest shock of the day came in Greece, where Aris Thessaloniki were unable to overturn their first leg deficit against Araz. Going 2-0 down by half time, the hosts were given a lifeline when Igor Ribeiro saw a red card shortly after the break. While they scored twice in the final half hour, the 2-2 draw was not enough to recover from their 2-1 reverse last week.

Pall Klettskard netted a 39th minute goal for KI Klaksvik as they edged Radnicki 1923 by a 1-0 scoreline to make the next round.

The 50 teams who won in this round move on to the third qualifying round, where two direct entrants, Vikingur Gota and Virtus, along with the eight losing teams from the Europa League second qualifying round, will join them. Most games will take place over the next two Thursdays.

Follow all of the UEFA Conference League qualifying round action on Flashscore.

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