UEFA Conference League: Samsunspor’s African stars confirm Round of 16 place

Four second half goals allowed Turkish Süper Lig club Samsunspor to pull away from North Macedonian club Shkendija on Thursday and secure a 5-0 aggregate victory in the UEFA Conference League’s Round of 32.

Following a 1-0 first leg victory in North Macedonia last week, Cameroon international midfielder Olivier Ntcham began the onslaught early in the second half by converting a penalty kick to put the hosts ahead 2-0 on aggregate.

Underdogs Shkendija managed to keep the tie close in the first half but the wheels completely fell off after halftime. After Ntcham’s penalty, a West African connection increased the advantage when Ivorian forward Jaures Assoumou set up Senegalese poacher Cherif Ndiaye to make it 2-0.

In the final fifteen minutes, it was Chad national team striker Marius Mouandilmandji who added insult to injury for the visitors.

A routine finish in the 79th minute lifted the Chadian to the top of the competition’s scoring chart (7 goals in 8 matches) before he added one more in second half stoppage time.

It was an expected result but the Turkish club continue to perform excellently in continental competition. After a dream start to the league phase before a poor finish, Samsunspor are back on track and appear to be a club who are capable of advancing deep into the knockout stages.

 

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They will know their opponents in the Round of 16 when the draw takes place on Friday.