UEFA Champions League: En-Nesyri stars for Fener, Ndiaye puts Red Star out of reach

Youssef En-Nesyri and Cherif Ndiaye were among the African players who helped their clubs advance to the final stage of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League proper on Tuesday.

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— follow / @451Fenerr (@451Arsiv) August 13, 2025

Moroccan striker En-Nesyri provided a goal and an assist as Fenerbahçe surged to a comeback 4-2 victory over Dutch giants Feyenoord, enough to secure a 6-4 aggregate victory. En-Nesyri assisted Jhon Duran for Fener’s second goal and then showed his remarkable work rate and pace to score in the 83rd minute to put the hosts beyond reach.

Cherif Ndiaye 11m⚽️
Crvena zvezda – Lech #fkcz pic.twitter.com/Jq6nf8xa1w

— Синишa М. (@SinishaSRB) August 13, 2025

In Belgrade, Senegalese striker Cherif Ndiaye converted from the penalty spot as Red Star Belgrade played visitors Lech Poznan to a 1-1 draw. Ndiaye’s penalty came just before halftime to give Red Star a three-goal lead on the aggregate score, which ended 4-2 in favor of the Serbian giants.

The 29-year-old was the leading scorer in Serbia’s SuperLiga last season, which has brought him back into the reckoning for Senegal with a place in the national team.

A couple of Cape Verdean internationals helped their teams through to the final stage of qualifying. Forward Leandro Andrade completed the misery for visiting Macedonian club Shkendija in Azeri champions Qarabag’s 5-1 second leg victory at home. The 25-year-old finished a cross (video above) for Qarabag’s 5th goal to complete a 6-1 aggregate win.

Attacking right back João Correia finished off a surprise result for Cypriot club Pafos FC, who advanced past Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kiev. Correia’s sliding finish early in the second half made it 2-0 in the second leg and 3-0 on aggregat, a deficit far too big for Dynamo to overcome.