Europa League: Home win propels Fradi up to third

Ferencváros started patiently but almost paid for poor defensive positioning early on, only for Marcus to spurn the first goal-scoring opportunity for the visitors when he missed the target from 14 metres.

Apart from that, FTC dominated most of the first 20 minutes and they got their reward midway through the half when Fradi striker Pesic latched on to a short back pass, crossed in a superb ball and then pounced on an eventual pass through to beat the goalkeeper from six metres, all in vain though, as the offside flag was raised.

As the home team increased the pressure, Pesic, Yusuf and Zachariassen all positioned themselves inside the Ludogorets penalty area, and that led to Ferencváros scorjng the opening goal and seeing another disallowed for offside.

They did quickly double their lead after the break though and were also thankful to goalkeeper Dénes Dibusz for preserving that advantage when he brilliantly saved a 58th-minute header, then had to intervene several times in subsequent minutes, as the team from Razgrad - somewhat unexpectedly - pinned the hosts in front of their goal for long periods.

Fradi largely escaped punishment at these times but did concede once to make the closing stages of the game tenser than they perhaps needed to be. That was until Lenny Joseph wrapped up the points by converting a slick counterattack.

With ten points from four matches, head coach Robbie Keane's team has now climbed to third place in the Europa League table, as they aim to qualify for the Round of 16. The Green and Whites will next visit Turkish giants Fenerbahce in the fifth round of fixtures in three weeks' time.

Ferencváros 3–1 Ludogorets (Bulgaria) (HT: 1–0)
Goalscorers: FTC: Kanikovszki (32), Cadu (53), Joseph (87), LUD: Son (79)