RismadarVoice Reporters
October 22, 2026
Bayer Leverkusen maintained their unbeaten start to the UEFA Europa League with a 2-0 victory over OFI Crete on Thursday, while Juventus and Sunderland dropped points after being held to draws in their respective fixtures.
German midfielder Jonas Hofmann scored twice in quick succession during the first half to secure Leverkusen’s third consecutive victory in the competition.
The result took the Bundesliga side to nine points from three matches, strengthening their position in the league-phase standings.
Hungarian club Ferencváros also maintained their perfect record with a commanding 4-1 victory over Portuguese side Torreense.
Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise recorded a convincing 4-0 win against Israeli opponents Hapoel Be’er Sheva, moving to seven points alongside Juventus and Sunderland.
In Turin, Juventus fought back to secure a 2-2 draw against French side Rennes in an entertaining encounter decided by a late Video Assistant Referee intervention.
Zeki Celik opened the scoring for the Italian club in the fifth minute before Musa Al-Taamari equalised for Rennes ten minutes later.
Boulaye Dia subsequently gave the visitors the advantage shortly before half-time, leaving Juventus facing the possibility of their first Europa League defeat of the campaign.
The Italian side responded in the second half, with Nick Woltemade converting a penalty to restore parity.
Juventus appeared to have completed a dramatic comeback when Jhon Lucumi found the net in the 88th minute.
However, a VAR review ruled out the goal for offside, forcing the hosts to settle for a point.
Elsewhere, English side Sunderland were held to a 1-1 draw by Lech Poznań in Poland.
Timur Tutierov scored for Sunderland, but the visitors were unable to preserve their lead, leaving manager Régis Le Bris’s side with seven points after three fixtures.
The result maintained Sunderland’s unbeaten European record, although they missed an opportunity to move level on points with Leverkusen and Ferencváros.
Meanwhile, in the UEFA Conference League, Egyptian forward Mohamed Salah scored from the penalty spot as Turkish side Trabzonspor defeated Scottish club Hearts 2-0.
Franculino Djú added the second goal to complete the victory, extending Trabzonspor’s positive start to their European campaign.
The latest results leave several clubs closely matched in the Europa League standings as the competition progresses towards its next round of fixtures.
