Hradec Králové Snatch Late Draw in Athens in Conference League Clash

Hradec Králové came from two goals down to draw 2:2 away to Greece's Panathinaikos at the Olympic Stadium in Athens in the first leg of the Conference League's fourth qualifying round. The Czech side clawed back the deficit and struck the equaliser deep into stoppage time.

The hosts took the lead thanks to a brace from striker Andreas Tetteh — the Ghanaian-born forward with Greek roots beat goalkeeper Adam Zadražil twice, in the 55th and 61st minutes. Before that, Hradec had largely sat back, with the Czech defenders doing well to contain Panathinaikos' dangerous attacking duo of Tetteh and Levi García, while Zadražil himself made several key saves.

A Dramatic Finish

In the closing minutes, Hradec sharply raised the tempo and threw fresh legs into the attack from the bench. In the 88th minute, Panathinaikos goalkeeper Iñaki Peña was forced into a fine save, tipping a shot from substitute Daniel Trubač onto the crossbar. Just a minute later, one of the home side's defenders failed to track back in time, leaving young striker Umar clean through on goal — 1:2.

Then, in the very last minute of stoppage time, the ball fell to Umar again after a set piece, and he made no mistake, slotting it into the corner past Peña. The final score stood at 2:2, sparking scenes of pure euphoria among the Czech players on the pitch.

The return leg will decide which side advances to the next round of Conference League qualifying. The match in Athens drew a crowd of 14,647.

Around Prague, based on reporting by sport.cz