"Riga" Dramatically Escape Defeat, Advance in Conference League

FK Riga, the Latvian football champions, staged a dramatic comeback at home on Tuesday to defeat North Macedonian club Vardar 5-2 in extra time. With an 8-4 aggregate win, Riga advanced to the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League.

Vardar took the lead in the 17th minute through David Babunski, but were reduced to ten men just two minutes later when Filip Najdovski received a red card. Despite the numerical advantage, Riga struggled to break through, and Vardar doubled their lead in the 66th minute via Azer Omeragić.

Riga finally pulled one back in the 87th minute through substitute Abdulrahman Taiwo, making it 1-2 and leveling the aggregate score at 4-4. As normal time ended with the aggregate tied, the match went into extra time.

Early in extra time, Raki Auani equalized for Riga in the 92nd minute. Jagu Sikeira then put Riga ahead for the first time in the match with a goal in the 105th minute. This sparked a confrontation between the benches, resulting in one red card for each team. Riga extended their lead further: Ramirez scored in the 109th minute, and Kaju Ferreira added a fifth in the 117th minute to seal a 5-2 victory.

In the first leg in Skopje, Riga had won 3-2. In the third qualifying round, Riga will face the winner between Swift Hesperange (Luxembourg) and Győri ETO (Hungary); the Hungarian side won the first leg 6-2.

Earlier this season, Riga were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League qualifiers, while Vardar lost to a Finnish club. Last season, Riga fell just short of the group stage, losing in the playoff round, while Vardar exited in the second qualifying round.

Currently, Riga sit second in the Latvian top flight, while Vardar started their domestic season with a win. Other Latvian teams – RFS, Auda, and Liepāja – will play their second-round ties on Thursday.