No way back for Servette
A creditable draw against Spanish league leaders Valencia was not enough to keep Swiss minnows Servette Geneva in the UEFA Cup.
Lucien Favre’s side came from behind twice on Thursday to clinch a well earned 2-2 draw with the in-form Spanish giants.
But the Geneva team’s fate had already been sealed during last week’s away leg, when they were humbled 3-0.
“We are leaving the European stage with our heads held high,” Favre insisted after Thursday’s draw. “It is of course sad that our European adventure is over but we have gone out with a draw against one of the continent’s top teams and we have been able to collect some useful experience along the way.”
“It’s the best match I’ve been involved in since joining Servette,” added striker Alex Frei after scoring the night’s final goal. “I’m not totally happy with my performance because I missed some chances. But overall we were satisfied with how we played, and I hope the crowd appreciated it.”
Unlucky start
The Servette fans in the crowd were probably just happy that another heavy defeat didn’t materialise following another unfortunate start by their team.
After conceding an own goal early in the first leg, the Genevans suffered exactly the same fate in the second with a deflection off the heel of Servette midfielder Thierno Bah gifting Valencia a 12th minute lead.
Some persistent play from Servette saw the home side grab an equaliser in the 37th minute, but with just seconds to go until half-time Valencia’s Miguel Angulo fired the Spaniards into a 2-1 lead.
Overall victory was now all but impossible for the Genevans, but the result on the night was still to play for. Although never quite matching their illustrious opponents for pace and precision, Servette kept plugging away and were finally rewarded with Frei’s well-placed strike in the 67th minute.
Winning chances
Both sides then had chances to win the match but the eventual draw was enough to send Valencia happily back to Spain while leaving Servette with at least some sense of achievement.
Though unable to celebrate a place in the UEFA Cup quarter-finals, Servette had already won plenty of plaudits after becoming the first Swiss club in 12 years to stretch a European campaign past the winter break.
Though unable to upset Valencia, Favre’s side have accounted for three worthy opponents this season, knocking out Slavia Prague, Real Zaragoza and Hertha Berlin on their march towards the fourth round.
by Mark Ledsom with agencies
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