Galatasaray breeze through in Romania

Galatasaray AŞ made it seven goals in two outings against FC Dinamo 1948 Bucureşti as Frank Rijkaard's team celebrated reaching the last 32 from UEFA Europa League Group F in convincing style.

Dismissed
Harry Kewell began the scoring in the 22nd minute and soon after Shabani Nonda added to the double he struck in the 4-1 victory over the same opponents in Istanbul a fortnight ago. With the hosts never looking capable of wiping out the deficit, Mehmet Topal lit up the second half with a superb left-footed stike after 55 minutes, 13 minutes before Ousmane N'Doye was dismissed for the hosts for collecting a second booking.

Midfield duo
Galatasaray wasted little time confirming their superiority over the Romanian club and their skilful midfielders Arda Turan and Barış Özbek were quickly into the action, displaying a level of control and awareness that was beyond their opponents. A sign of the growing discomfort in the home rearguard came as Emilian Dolha fumbled Kewell's high free-kick and needed a second grab to claim it.

Celebrations
Kewell's goal was a peach as he first controlled the ball with the outside of his boot before taking another touch with his left foot and then directing a right-footed drive beyond Dolha. Rijkaard's players celebrated with a mass huddle and repeated it two minutes later when Nonda doubled their lead. The marking was non-existent as the DR Congo striker aimed his header towards the bottom left-hand corner of goal and was as surprised as anyone when Dolha allowed the ball to escape through his fingers.

Third place
That was that as far as the contest was concerned because while Dinamo created the occasional opening, their finishing lacked conviction, unlike the venomous drive with which Topal completed the victory. With Panathinaikos FC also winning away to SK Sturm Graz, Dinamo are now six points adrift of second place and with two matches remaining.