Lech Poznan reach Europa League stage after 2-2 draw with FC Thun
Polish champions Lech Poznan secured a spot in the Europa League league phase following a 2-2 draw at FC Thun, advancing 9-2 on aggregate.
Early exchanges and first-half turnaround
Lech Poznan traveled to Stockhorn Arena holding a 7-0 advantage from the first leg in Poznan. The hosts created the first dangerous opening in the 13th minute, when goalkeeper Mateusz Lis saved a goal-line effort from Louis Passavant. Lech responded in the 17th minute after Luis Palma curled a cross from the left wing to Robert Gumny, who controlled the ball before finding the far corner. The Polish side threatened to double the lead two minutes later when Passavant blocked an attempt from Daniel Hakans, before Gumny missed with a subsequent header. FC Thun equalized in the 22nd minute through a quick counterattack, with Simon Lengen sliding in to finish a pass from Furkan Dursun. The home side moved ahead 2-1 in the 43rd minute when Dursun exploited defensive spacing to beat Lis with a low drive.
- Mateusz Lis saves a goal-line effort from Louis Passavant.
- Robert Gumny scores from a Luis Palma cross to give Lech the lead.
- Simon Lengen levels the score for FC Thun from Furkan Dursun's pass.
- Patrik Walemark comes on for the injured Daniel Hakans.
- Furkan Dursun scores with a low shot to put FC Thun ahead.
- Patrik Walemark equalizes following a long assist from goalkeeper Mateusz Lis.
Goalkeeper assist and second-half management
Thun head coach Gian-Luca Privitelli altered his lineup with several reserve players, making further changes at half-time by introducing Justin Roth and Fabio Fehr. Lech coach Niels Frederiksen brought on Patrik Walemark in the 26th minute for the injured Hakans, and replaced Antoni Kozubal with Radoslaw Murawski at the interval. Allahyar Sayyadmanesh missed a one-on-one chance to level the score after receiving a pass from Yannick Agnero. Lech eventually found the equalizer in the 68th minute through a direct connection from their own penalty area. Lis launched a long clearance that reached Walemark, who cut inside past a defender to score his third goal of the tie. Lech closed out the match by introducing Pablo Rodriguez and Terry Yegbe in place of Sayyadmanesh and Wojciech Monka.
European qualification and prize money
The 2-2 result confirmed Lech's progression to the Europa League league phase with a 9-2 aggregate victory over the Swiss champions. Advancing to the group stage guarantees the club 4.31 million euros in UEFA prize money, amounting to over 18 million Polish zlotys. The qualification follows Lech's elimination from the Champions League second qualifying round, where they surrendered a three-goal advantage against Danish side Aarhus before losing on penalties. The Polish champions will discover their eight league-phase opponents during the official UEFA draw scheduled for Friday, 28 August at 13:00. Potential opponents in the competition include European clubs such as AC Milan, Juventus, Bayer Leverkusen, Benfica, and Olympique Lyon.
Results across Polish European contenders
Lech became the second Polish team to reach the Europa League league stage after Jagiellonia Bialystok, who advanced earlier with a 6-1 aggregate win. The outcome for other Ekstraklasa representatives in European qualification was less successful in the Conference League fourth qualifying round. Gornik Zabrze failed to progress after losing their return leg against French side AS Monaco. Rakow Czestochowa was similarly knocked out of the competition following a second-leg defeat to Croatian club Hajduk Split.
