Olympiacos see off Slovan Bratislava in Europa League

BRATISLAVA - Greek champion Olympiacos F.C. drew 2-2 with SK Slovan Bratislava in the second leg of the UEFA Europa League play-off on Thursday to advance into the group stage.

Losing the first leg 3-0, Slovan was trying to score an early goal to get back into the fight and almost succeeded when Ezekiel Henty's break-away attempt bounced off the post 14 minutes in.

Things took a bad turn for the home team in the 26th minute when Vernon De Marco's foul was awarded a direct red card by the referee, putting a bitter end to Slovan's hopes of advancing.

The Greek team gained the upper hand and in the 33rd minute opened the score when Youssef El Arabi's header found its way into the back of the net after a center pass.

With nothing to lose, Slovan Bratislava became more threatening and managed to tie the game after Henty converted on Jaromir Zmrhal's pass.

Nine minutes into the second half, the visitors took the lead again. After quickly setting up a play after a foul, the Nigerian striker Henry Onyekuru put one in near the post.

Despite being a man short, Slovan managed to tie the game once again. The home team's latest addition to the roster, the former Sheffield Wednesday forward Andre Green timed his run on a corner kick perfectly and sent the ball into the net.