olympiacos win thriller to clinch third published: tuesday 9 december 2014, 22.49cet olympiacos fc 4-2 malmö ff the greek side seal third place in group a after late goals from kostas mitroglou and ıbrahim afellay end the swedish resistance in piraeus.
• david fuster opens scoring, malmö sub simon kroon equalises with first touch • alejandro domínguez rifles in superb volley as hosts regain initiative • markus rosenberg levels again for visitors with nine minutes left • late kostas mitroglou and ıbrahim afellay goals secure win for greek title holders • olympiacos finish third behind juventus and qualify for uefa europa league • round of 16 draw takes place in nyon at 12.00cet on 15 december
olympiacos fc's european adventure will continue in the uefa europa league despite the greek champions claiming a hard-earned 4-2 victory over malmö ff in piraeus in their final group a match.
late goals from kostas mitroglou and substitute ıbrahim afellay in the last four minutes of regulation time ended the resistance of the swedes, who had twice drawn level. alejandro domínguez's sensational volley and david fuster's opener sandwiched simon kroon's strike for the visitors, before markus rosenberg made it 2-2 with nine minutes left.
míchel's team got the necessary third straight home win to give themselves a chance of progress, but juventus also did what was required by drawing at home to club atletico de madrid, meaning the ıtalians finished second. malmö ended bottom of the section.
olympiacos started confidently with midfielder fuster drawing a stop from robin olsen with a low shot. olsen then made a fine double save from domínguez’s cross-shot and pajtim kasami's close-range follow-up as the hosts asserted their authority. such enterprising play was rewarded in the 22nd minute when fuster headed home kasami's knock-on from arthur masuaku's long throw. malmö found it difficult to retain possession and it spoke volumes that they failed to register a single first-half effort on target, delvin n'dinga's header against his own crossbar their only sight of goal.
olympiacos began the second period as the first, with a forward surge and mitroglou was only denied a goal by olsen's superb point-blank reflexes. at 1-0, however, malmö were still in contention, and their patience paid off on 59 minutes when a quick counterattack saw substitute kroon restore parity with his first touch from emil forsberg's precise cross, just two minutes after coming on.
yet olympiacos hit back almost immediately, the inspired domínguez volleying brilliantly past olsen after markus halsti's poor defensive header. the swedish title holders levelled again, though, with rosenberg tapping in his third goal in six matches from anton tinnerholm's excellent delivery. even so, olympiacos had the last word as mitroglou nodded home with three minutes remaining, and then afellay slotted in kasami's pass. enock adu's dismissal for a challenge on kasami compounded a miserable night for åge hareide's team.
