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Poles on a roll: Polish clubs keep 100% record in UEFA Conference League

Photo: PAP/Artur Reszko,
Both Jagiellonia Bialystok and Legia Warsaw registered wins last night in European competition. Photo: PAP/Artur Reszko, PAP/Leszek Szymański
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It was another successful night for Polish clubs in Europe on Thursday, with both Jagiellonia Białystok and Legia Warsaw recording wins to maintain their 100% records in the UEFA Conference League.

Facing Moldovan minnows Petrocub Hîncești, Jagiellonia overcame a slow start to pull into a 69th minute lead courtesy of a cheeky backheel from Afimico Pululu.

Three minutes later, Pululu was the hero again, doubling Jaga’s lead after rifling his shot into the roof of the net from ten yards out. Recovering from a sluggish, and at times sloppy, first-half performance, the Polish champions carved out several more chances in the second-half and were unfortunate to finish just 2-0 ahead.

“I guess we didn’t really know what to expect from the other side,” admitted coach Adrian Siemieniec after the game. “We started very cautiously, but luckily they didn’t impose a fast pace or take advantage of the fact that we failed to take the initiative.”

Reflecting on Jagiellonia’s strong start to their European campaign, Siemieniec refused to get carried away: “Six points from two European matches is a big deal, regardless of how those results were achieved... [but] we will celebrate only when we mathematically advance further.

He added: “We’re happy with our situation because it gives us a lot of capital when it comes to the remaining four matches, but we’re going to stay calm.”
Legia, too, had reason to celebrate after cruising to a comfortable 3-0 win away at Serbian side FK TSC Bačka Topola.

Bartosz Kapustka opened the scoring in the 11th minute by tapping in from close range, and Legia were unfortunate not to be 2-0 up after Luquinhas fired high and wide on 35 minutes.

Luquinhas wouldn’t have to wait long before adding his name to the scoresheet, with the Brazilian smashing in from close range on 47 minutes after Marc Gual had his shot cleared from the line. Legia continued to press and put the gloss on a convincing win with a third goal in the 62nd minute.

This time, it was Kacper Chodyna stroking the ball home after a searching ball from Rúben Vinagre had split the Serbian defense.

Legia and Jagiellonia now have six points from a maximum of six, with both Polish sides next returning to European action on November 7th. Legia will host Dinamo Minsk, while Jagiellonia will play Molde FK.
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