Groningen seemed to be heading for another Europa League defeat, but an injury time Danny Hoesen strike earned them a 1-1 draw against Slovan Liberec.
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Groningen have found it hard in their first Europa League group stage campaign with defeats to Marseille and Braga so far, but they had the upper hand in against Slovan Liberec in the Czech Republic.
Mimoun Mahi struck the post with a free kick early in the second half, while Albert Rusnak and Bryan Linssen also went close for Edwin van de Looi’s side. At the other end Sergio Padt had to be aware to deny Dmitriy Efremov, while Josef Sural sent an overhead kick wide.
Michael de Leeuw made his return from illness on 78 minutes, but the attacker was only on the pitch for five minutes before a high challenge was punished with a red card. The red seemed to cost Groningen any chance of a point when Dutchman Kevin Luckasson struck three minutes before the end to give Slovan Liberec the lead, but four minutes into added time Ettiene Reijnen was fouled in the box to earn Groningen a penalty. Danny Hoesen stepped up and although his initial effort was saved, the forward followed up to net on the rebound.
Groningen remain bottom of the group despite their first point, while Braga sit top of the pile after beating Marseille 3-2.
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