Besiktas defeated Lithuania's Kauno Zalgiris 3-0 in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League play-off round on Thursday, scoring three goals in a single match for the first time this season and putting themselves in a strong position to reach the competition's league phase, APA reports citing Türkiye Today.
Playing at Tupras Stadium in Istanbul, Besiktas took a 2-0 lead into halftime through goals from Oh Hyeon-gyu and Amir Murillo before Orkun Kokcu added a second-half penalty to complete the scoreline. The match was officiated by referee Tobias Stieler.
Unbeaten run continues
The victory extended Besiktas' perfect record in all official matches this season. The Istanbul club has now kept a clean sheet in five European fixtures and one league match, bringing its total shutouts to six this season.
Despite the unbeaten start, Besiktas had scored more than one goal in only one previous match this campaign, making Thursday's three-goal display notable. The team beat Denmark's Midtjylland 1-0 and 2-0 in the previous qualifying round, and defeated Hradec Kralove and Eyupspor by 1-0 scorelines in earlier fixtures.
The return leg against Kauno Zalgiris is scheduled for Aug. 27 in Lithuania, with a Besiktas win or draw sending the club through to the league stage of the tournament.
South Korean forward Oh Hyeon-gyu scored his first official goal of the season in the sixth minute, heading in a corner delivery from Ridvan Yilmaz.
Oh had started four of Besiktas' previous matches this season, against Midtjylland and Hradec Kralove, before coming off the bench against Eyupspor in the 63rd minute. Thursday's header marked his first goal contribution of the campaign.
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