Translated material
Zenit won the first match of the Europa League playoff round
Petersburg "Zenith" defeated the Norwegian "Molde" in the first match of the playoff round of the Europa League.
The meeting was held at the St. Petersburg stadium and ended in a strong-willed victory for the hosts with a score of 3:1.
Eirik Hestad opened the scoring in the 42nd minute. In the middle of the second half, Artem Dzyuba equalized the score, and ten minutes before the end of normal time, an accurate strike by striker Anton Zabolotny brought the Russian team forward. Another goal for Zenit in the 90th minute was scored by defender Miha Mevlya.
On August 16, in the return game of the 3rd qualifying round of the Europa League, the St. Petersburg club defeated the players of Dynamo Minsk with a score of 8:1.
In the first game, Dynamo beat Zenit 4-0. In order to advance to the next round, the St. Petersburg team had to score at least five goals. On aggregate, the confrontation ended with a score of 8:5 in favor of the Russian club.