Lincoln knocked out of Europa League by Omonia

Following their 1-1 draw against Cypriot side Omonia, Lincoln Red Imps boss Javier Pavón knew that their opponents would be a difficult side to play away from home.

Pavón, however, remained confident in his side’s determination to make a contest of it and try to progress to the next round of the Europa League.

Omonia, playing at home, had the advantage of a passionate crowd behind them. Lincoln Red Imps started with both Jolley and Lopes in defence, the first time the pair had started together since Jolley’s arrival. Among the other changes, Kike was named on the bench, while Toledano and Idrissi were given the nod. Britto, Torrilla and Nano, three key players for Lincoln in recent seasons, were all left out once again, a sign of the changing times under the new boss.

Omonia started strongly, creating two early chances within the opening two minutes. Lincoln responded with a corner from which Rutjens, who had scored in the first leg, failed to hit the target.

The home side enjoyed the better of the early play, testing Santana in the 19th minute with a low-driven effort from outside the penalty area.

With the crowd roaring them on, Omonia found the breakthrough in the 21st minute, beating the offside trap. Diony controlled the ball well before powering past the defenders and calmly slotting beyond Santana.

As the teams took a water break in the 27th minute, a concerned-looking Pavón gathered his players together to regroup as the task of mounting a comeback was already looking increasingly difficult.

Niggling, unnecessary fouls and misplaced passes saw Lincoln surrender possession far too easily whenever they had the ball.

Lincoln, who had supposedly strengthened their squad during the summer, were looking more like a fifth-tier side than the team that had reached last season’s Conference League group stage.

It was not until the final 10 minutes of the first half that Lincoln began to enjoy spells of possession. Even then, Omonia’s organised shape prevented them from advancing beyond the final third, while Diony continued to trouble Santana, testing him again in the 37th minute.

With deliveries into the attacking third almost non-existent, Lincoln Red Imps created very little to trouble the Omonia goalkeeper.

Lincoln were fortunate that Montour’s goal in the 45th minute was ruled out for offside. Three weak attempts to clear the danger allowed Omonia to get a shot away which, although parried by Santana, was not held. Montour, having moved into an offside position before the shot was struck, tapped the loose ball between Santana’s legs, only to see the flag go up.

The opening minutes of the second half saw Lincoln press higher with greater determination, forcing the home side back into their own half, although Omonia continued to look dangerous on the counter-attack with quick, direct balls.

After 10 minutes, however, the home side settled back into the game and once again forced Lincoln onto the defensive, with a couple of chances drifting narrowly wide.

In the 57th minute, a corner floated to the back post found Markic, whose effort was deflected behind for another corner by a packed Lincoln defence.

Santana was forced to punch clear from the resulting corner before Lincoln again conceded a needless foul and were forced to defend another set piece.

The goalkeeper was again called into action, punching away a fourth corner in the space of three minutes before Omonia’s latest attack ended with a shot into the side netting.

It was not until the 65th minute that Lincoln managed to relieve the pressure. They won a free-kick near the left edge of the penalty area but quickly surrendered possession after an attempted backheel flick ran harmlessly through for a goal kick.

Omonia had one of their clearest opportunities to double the lead in the 75th minute. Beaten, Santana could only watch as the ball flashed narrowly past the far post for a goal kick, much to the frustration of the home side.

A minute later, it was Bernardo Lopes whose effort was blocked after he collected the ball behind the defence from a corner.

Four minutes later, a free-kick from Mula sailed well wide of its intended target. His next delivery was comfortably gathered by the Omonia goalkeeper as Lincoln wasted another late opportunity to put pressure on the Cypriot defence.

With seven minutes remaining, Pavón introduced both Mason and Britto.

Britto’s first involvement earned him a yellow card as he brought down an Omonia player to stop a quick break down the right. The resulting free-kick, just outside the penalty area, was deflected by the defensive wall for a corner.

Minutes later, Lopes also found himself in the referee’s notebook for a similar challenge in almost the same area as Omonia continued to press.

This time Santana pushed the ball around the post for yet another corner.

Jolley was then on hand to clear the floated delivery off the line at the back post.

Frustration also got the better of Ghobashy, who received a yellow card after arguing with the referee over a foul awarded against him.

Lincoln Red Imps continued to struggle to play their way out from the back.

A surging run by Mason finally produced a genuine chance, with the Omonia goalkeeper making a save from his shot on target. It proved too little, too late, however, as moments later the referee blew for full-time.

Lincoln Red Imps were knocked out of the Europa League and now drop into the Conference League.