With 50 Europa League qualifying matches played this week, we were bound to get an interesting one eventually. FK Suduva and Shakhter Soligorsk delivered with a 2-1 thriller that featured a bicycle kick goal, a red card and an extra time winner.
First, the bike:
Barcelona have slowly begun entering the catch-22 phase initiated by the golden era of Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets, Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique. Basically, it goes like this: La Masia will never again produce a group of players like that one. They turned Barcelona into a global sporting institution synonymous with the quality of being elite.
After playing the hero on June 25 against the Portland Timbers, Clint Dempsey was back at it as the Seattle Sounders rolled the Colorado Rapids on July 4th, 3-1. Dempsey, who’s struggled along with the rest of the Sounders attack this season, looks back to his best after registering a brace and an assist on the night, taking his total number of goals this season to seven from 16 games.