Lech Poznań - Rapid Wien 4:1

Lech kicked off the European competition after two league draws in a row. The squad from Poznań was forced to share points with fellow Conference League participants Raków Częstochowa and Jagiellonia Białystok, as both matches ended in a 2:2 tie. On Thursday afternoon, the team from the capital of Greater Poland faced what was, in theory, their most challenging rival, Rapid Vienna, who had been drawn from Pot 1 and reached the quarterfinals of the competition in the previous season.

The first half was marked by Lech’s indisputable dominance. Frederiksen’s squad played at such a high intensity that the guests struggled to keep up. Lech quickly capitalised on their advantage - less than 15 minutes into the game, Luis Palma found the back of the net. The Honduran beat Rapid’s goalkeeper with a strong shot near the post. Not long later, the keeper made a costly mistake - Palma once again fired from distance, Niklas Hedl spilt the ball in front of him, and Mikael Ishak pounced on the rebound. The Swede even had the chance to score a brace before the break, but failed to convert a penalty kick into his second goal. In the added time, the hosts delivered the third blow - a one-two between Palma and Ismaheel was finished off precisely by the latter.

In the second half, the tempo of the game slowed down, and the squad from Austria started to look better as they tried to get back into the game. In the 64^th minute, Andrija Radulović changed the score to 3:1 after he received a precise cross from the flank. That goal prompted Lech to regain focus, which ended with the hosts scoring the fourth goal. A quick counterattack was finished off with a low shot near the post by Leo Bengtsson, who had just come on moments earlier. The Swede thus set the final score to 4:1 for Lech Poznań.