Utrecht have beaten Valletta 3-1 in Waalwijk on Thursday to progress to the Europa League 3rd qualifying round.
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With the first leg finishing 0-0 last week, Utrecht knew nothing but a victory would do but they couldn’t count on home advantage, with their stadium in use at the women’s European Championships, meaning the match took place in Waalwijk.
Utrecht dominated from the start and only had to wait until the 17th minute to open the scoring with Sean Klaiber smashing the ball into the net from the edge of the area.
The opener didn’t open the floodgates for Erik ten Hag’s side, though, and the match stayed in the balance until the 75th minute before Willem Janssen headed in a second. Moments later, Zakaria Labyad sealed Utrecht’s progression with an excellent curling effort into the top corner.
Santiago Malano pulled a consolation back for Valletta late on but it will be Utrecht progressing to the next round where they will face Polish side Lech Poznan.
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