Heartbreak for AEK in Kiev as goalless draw was not enough
AEK showed once again in the Europa League that it lives and dies by its draws, as it came close to beating Dynamo in freezing Kiev but ended up in a stalemate on Thursday that leaves it out of the last 16 of the tournament, albeit undefeated.
Following the 1-1 draw in Athens last week, AEK went out in Ukraine in search of a goal that would give it the ticket to the next round.
The Yellows were dominant for most of the game and all but grabbed that goal, which proved too elusive in the end.
The chance that Shojaei Masoud missed in the second half will go down as one of the year’s highlights, as he misfired from two meters away in front of an open goal, after a cross by Tassos Bakasetas from the right. There were also other glorious chances missed by Lazaros Christodoulopoulos and Sergio Araujo.
The exit of exhausted Christodoulopoulos led to a slump in AEK’s performance in the last 15 minutes, with Dynamo pushing for a winner – yet the 0-0 draw eventually suited it just fine.
AEK bowed out of Europe with two wins and eight draws in 10 games this season.
Before the match a coach that carried AEK fans to the stadium was pelted with stones by Dynamo fans, leaving two Greeks with slight injuries.
