Fourth straight win in Europe

Rather than merely defend their lead, FC Copenhagen followed through on their excellent first leg display and secured an another impressive win against Lillestrøm in the second qualification round of the Uefa Cup, and so, on the back of a very convincing 7-3 aggregate win over the Norwegian Cup winners, F.C. Copenhagen is now in the competition proper.

By Lars Kristensen

In the second leg, F.C. Copenhagen continued from where they had left off in the first, dominating Lillestrøm completely, but this time, even more so. With two early goals from the fast-paced attack of Santin and Ailton, the lions quickly removed any hope that Lillestrøm might have had of getting back from their 3-1 defeat in Copenhagen from a fortnight ago. With a final score of 4-2, F.C. Copenhagen thus added another win to their perfect streak in Europe this season. The team has now won four out of four games with an impressive accumulative score of 18-3

Coach, Ståle Solbakken:

- Today, the players really showed what high level of play they are able to execute. Our offence was incredibly dynamic, our midfield - led by an outstanding Nørregaard – worked as hard as ever and, although we did concede two goals, I still think we played very well in defence too. I guess Peter Larsson was the sole negative point of the game, said Solbakken and then added: Of course, I am very pleased with all of the players today but it is especially gratifying to observe how the new players are falling more and more in to place within our concept of play.

Canadian International, Atiba Hutchinson:

- We came well prepared and really played well throughout. Everybody on the team were very focused on getting a win so when Lillestrøm got back on two a-piece we went up a notch just to set things right.

Hjalte Nørregaard:

- We dominated completely and played well for the entire 90 minutes of the game. Our play has improved quite a lot in recent games so we play with great confidence now.

For the Round 1 draw, F.C. Copenhagen just squeezed in with the seeded teams and as such was paired up with FC Moscow - the no. 4 of last year’s Russian Premier League.  The exact dates and times of the two legs have not yet been determined but surely, this promises to be a truly exciting tie with the winner booking a place in the group stage of the Uefa Cup.

Game stats:
Liillestrøm SK - F.C. Copenhagen 2 - 4 (Aggregate 3 - 7)
0 - 1 Santin (10)
0 - 2 Ailton (24)
1 - 2 Occean (30)
2 - 2 Brenne (76)
2 - 3 Hutchinson (78)
2 - 4 Junior (87)