Seleznyov's last-gasp goal denies Lazio
Thursday, September 17, 2015
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Dnipro 1-1 Lazio
Yevhen Seleznyov's added-time equaliser snatched two points away from the visitors in a hard-fought opening encounter in Group G.
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- Sergej Milinković-Savić opens scoring with his first UEFA competition goal
- Yevhen Seleznyov heads hosts level in added time
- 2014/15 finalists concede first home goal in five European games
- Lazio remain unbeaten against Ukrainian opposition since 1975
- Next Group G games: Rosenborg v Dnipro, Lazio v St-Étienne (1 October)
Yevhen Seleznyov scored a 94th-minute equaliser as Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk demonstrated the resolve that took them to last season's UEFA Europa League final by rescuing a 1-1 Group G draw with Lazio.
In a cagey encounter, it was Lazio who created the game's first chance when – in the 16th minute – Ogenyi Onazi played in Alessandro Matri, who timed his run across the line expertly before firing in a shot that Denys Boyko barely palmed away for a corner.
The visitors continued to look dangerous, and in the 34th minute they took the lead through Sergej Milinković-Savić, the Serbian Under-21 international deftly guiding Ricardo Kishna's pinpoint free-kick into the Dnipro net.
The hosts' best opportunity of the half came on the stroke of half-time, the busy Léo Matos's cross finding Seleznyov, but the Ukrainian international could not inject enough power into the header to trouble Federico Marchetti.
Stefano Pioli's side almost doubled their advantage immediately after the break, Kishna's free-kick creating havoc in the Dnipro area and forcing Edmar to almost steer the ball into his own net, with only the reflexes of Boyko sparing his team-mate's blushes.
Myron Markevych's men nearly responded through Papa Gueye, who nodded powerfully over the bar from a free-kick while in plenty of space, yet they must have feared their unbeaten home record was slipping away as Lazio continued to hold firm.
However, with just seconds of stoppage time left, another Léo centre found Seleznyov unmarked and the forward made no mistake, placing the ball past Marchetti to grab his side a potentially vital point.