Dundee United keep European dream alive with victory in Luxembourg
The Tayside club will now have at least another two European games after booking their place in the third qualifying round with a 2-0 aggregate win.
Jim Goodwin's men took a one goal lead into the second-leg clash following their victory at Tannadice last week.
And they remained ahead on aggregate at half-time following a cagey first 45 minutes in Luxembourg on Thursday.
Their lead was doubled on the hour mark when defender Iurie Iovu rose highest in the box to head Zac Sapsford's cross into the net to make it 1-0 on the night and 2-0 in the tie.
They will now play either Rapid Vienna or Decic in the next round, with the Austrian side taking a two goal lead into their second leg that kicked off at 7.30pm.
But before that, United will turn their attention to domestic matters when they kick off their Premiership campaign away to Falkirk on Sunday.
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Daily Record
34 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Falkirk assistant Paul Smith opens up on 'surreal' heart attack and John McGlynn moment that brought a tear to the eye
Smith was rushed from the stadium to hospital as he prepares for the Bairns' Premiership return just over six months on Paul Smith felt the stinging frustration of crashing out the Scottish Cup to Raith Rovers in extra time. As always, it hurt. But unbeknown to the Falkirk assistant a far worse crushing pain was about to hit within half an hour of the full time whistle on that January cup epic. A frightening sequence of events that left John McGlynn 's right hand man in agony in the club doctor's room at the Falkirk Stadium before being blue lighted to hospital and having a stent inserted after suffering a heart attack The 62-year-old is full recovered now. Remarkably he was back with his team - in the director's box rather than the dug out - six days later to see the Bairns dish out revenge on Raith in Kirkcaldy on their sensational march to the Championship title. Today, 27 weeks on from that traumatic evening, Smith will be by McGlynn's side at the Falkirk Stadium as they lead their side out in front of a sell-out crowd against Dundee United for the club's first top flight campaign in 16 seasons. And for that the former Bairns midfielder will be forever grateful to the NHS heroes at St John's Hospital in Livingston and Edinburgh Royal Infirmary who worked wonders to clear a severely blocked artery just two hours after he had delivered his usual post match debrief to his players following their cup exit. Smith told Record Sport: 'They told me if it had been the main artery on the other side of my heart that had been blocked then I might not have made it. 'Frightening? To be honest it was all just surreal. It happened so quickly, At one point I felt like someone was sitting on my chest. 'But there had been no warning signs, I felt absolutely fine during the game other than the pressure you'd feel during any Scottish Cup tie that you're desperate to get through.' Even when the final whistle blew on that 120 minute cracker, Smith had no idea what was about to follow. In many ways, the father of four was lucky that when it did arrive, he was surrounded by medical experts. He said: 'My dad had had a heart bypass at 55 so I knew there was a chance at some point I might have heart problems. 'But nothing leading up to that day, or that moment, suggested any problems. 'We had gone through bits and pieces with the players for 15 minutes as usual in the changing room after the final whistle. 'Then I was heading through to the office, John was away to do TV and press, and I remember feeling really sweaty and clammy. 'I asked the others if it was warm in the office. It's not normally the warmest building in the world particularly in January. 'I said I was going to go through to see the club doctor Calum Fraser and, to be fair to Blair Doughty our sports scientist, he clicked straight away that something wasn't right. 'Five minutes later I was on the treatment table and the feeling was getting worse - that's when it started to feel like someone was sitting on my chest. 'It was tightening up and that's when the doc realised I had to get to the hospital as soon as possible. 'He was actually working at St John's so we jumped in his car and floored it to Livingston. 'They stuck an ECG machine on me and right away they were pumping blood thinners into me, getting me into an ambulance and blue lighted all the way to Edinburgh. 'There was a team waiting on me there and straight away I went in and got a stent put into the main artery that was blocked. 'This was all within two and a half hours of full time in the game. 'I was lying there watching them do it all on a 60-inch TV screen in front of me. It was just surreal. 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'We won which was great. We were desperate to keep ourselves top of the Championship. 'John waved me down at the end of the game and I got a round of applause from the fans which was emotional. 'It brought a tear to the eye. 'We have a great bond with the supporters and it was a great reception. 'The Raith fans were clapping aswell, John and myself had a good time there previously, so that was fantastic. 'I've been brand new since I got the stents in. I got a check up three months ago and they are happy with the way I am. 'I was back in the dug out within weeks.' The minor wobble that saw the Championship title race go to the final minutes of the season might not have been the best recovery. But Smith said: 'The last two seasons, back to back titles, have been unbelievable. 'We've done it with the same core group of players with some important additions along the way. 'It's credit to them. Sunday will be really special. John and I will be too focussed on the game to really take it in. 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He said: 'We might be older - but we are certainly not old school. We are always willing to learn. 'John's knowledge of the game has always been unbelievable. Second to none. 'But I think he learned so much working under Brendan Rodgers at Celtic as analyst and scout. 'Going to watch PSG, Man City, Barcelona, before Champions League games I think opened up a new world to John. 'He was able to transfer that knowledge into what we went on to do at Raith, as well as we could. 'It was a hell of a learning curve for me as well! 'John is massively under-rated. Even from what he did at Raith, winning League One in his first season, then finishing third and just missing out on promotion to the Premiership with one of the smallest budgets in the league. 'At that time John deserved a big move. 'Lots of times his name gets thrown into conversations for jobs. But it's never happened for one reason or another. 'But we got a move to Falkirk. I'd played here and knew how big a club they can be. 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Daily Record
34 minutes ago
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Airdrie athlete Brodie Young hopes medal win boosts Commonwealth Games bid
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The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
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