FC Lugano are in the League Phase of the UEFA Conference League. At the Batumi Arena, in the second leg of their play-off against Maccabi Tel Aviv, the bianconeri drew 1–1 and secured qualification at the end of an evening in which they had to overcome obstacles, endure a tough spell and play for over half an hour with ten men.
Mattia Croci-Torti’s side started with character, withstood the Israelis’ growing pressure and, in the second half – following Zanotti’s sending-off and Peretz’s converted penalty – found the strength to fight back. Dereck Moncada scored the goal that secured qualification: the Honduran, born in 2007, came on as a substitute and, in the 79th minute, scored an extraordinary goal, which proved decisive in levelling the score and opening the door for Lugano to the main phase of the competition.
BALANCE AND CONCENTRATION
The first sign of the match came in the 5th minute and was from Lugano. Behrens worked the ball and laid it off to Dos Santos, who attempted a volley from outside the box: it was a tricky move and the ball went wide. The bianconeri’s start was nonetheless convincing, with high pressing allowing the team to consistently occupy the opposition’s attacking third, though without finding the space to create a genuine goal-scoring opportunity.
As the minutes ticked by, Maccabi began to gain ground. In the 24th minute, Dor Peretz won back a ball lost by Lugano as they tried to clear and fired a shot from distance, but the central effort was comfortably saved by von Ballmoos. Three minutes later came the bianconeri goalkeeper’s first real test: Shahar took a free-kick from 25 metres and von Ballmoos dived to his left to parry the attempt away.
The Israelis were primarily looking to pose a threat from set pieces. In the 41st minute, Shahar once again sent a ball to the far post, where Revivo managed to get a header in from a good position but lacked both power and accuracy: von Ballmoos saved it.
The half-time whistle blew with the score at 0–0. Lugano had the better of the early stages, whilst Maccabi grew into the game in the latter part of the first half. However, both teams remained extremely focused defensively, aware of the significance of every single moment in a match where a place in the League Phase was at stake.
MONCADA SEALS QUALIFICATION
The second half began with Lugano once again on the attack. In the 52nd minute, a corner was played short to Steffen, who delivered a precise cross to the far post: Papadopoulos met it with a header, forcing Melika to make a two-handed save. Two minutes later, Dos Santos found Grgić on the edge of the box: the midfielder controlled the ball and aimed for the far post with a curling shot that went just wide.
It was an excellent start to the second half for the bianconeri, but in the 58th minute the match took a turn. Zanotti, who had already been booked, fouled Camara and was shown a second yellow card. Lugano were thus reduced to ten men for over half an hour.
Maccabi immediately tried to capitalise on this and, in the 65th minute, came close to taking the lead from another set-piece: Shahar crossed into the box, Peretz timed his run to beat the defence and rose at the far post, sending the ball just wide.
Croci-Torti reshuffled the team and brought on Kelvin to provide greater cover for the defence. It was the substitute himself who, in the 68th minute, found himself at the centre of an unfortunate incident: during a run with Madmon, a clash of legs sent the Israeli striker to the ground in the box and the referee pointed to the spot. In the 69th minute, captain Dor Peretz converted the penalty to put Maccabi ahead.
Down to ten men and needing to come from behind, Lugano were called upon to show real character. In the 76th minute, the Israelis created another chance with a cross from Ben Harosh to Shahar, who headed over from a central position.
Three minutes later, however, came the moment that turned the match on its head. Cimignani played a long ball through to Moncada, who had come on for Behrens. The young striker won the physical battle with Ben Harosh, drove towards goal, beat an opponent and, from the edge of the box, unleashed a powerful curling right-footed shot. The ball nestled into the top corner, beyond Melika’s reach: it was 1–1 in the 79th minute. An extraordinary goal, both in terms of its significance and execution, which put Lugano back in the lead and in a position to secure qualification.
Maccabi reacted immediately. In the 83rd minute, Peretz shot from outside the box and the ball took a deflection off Delcroix, sailing narrowly wide. In the closing minutes, the Israelis stepped up the pressure even further, whilst the Bianconeri defence gritted its teeth and protected a priceless result.
Lugano, however, did not give up on hitting them on the counter-attack. In the 90th minute, Moncada put together a move almost identical to the one that led to the goal: he set off at speed, once again beat his direct opponent and found himself one-on-one with Melika, trying to catch the goalkeeper off guard at the near post. The shot went just wide. The Honduran’s impact on the match was devastating, and his pace constantly caused problems for the Maccabi defence.
The final chance came in the 94th minute. Davida got past Cimignani, cut inside onto his left foot and shot from the edge of the box, but von Ballmoos rose to the occasion with a crucial save. It was the final moment of tension of the evening.
At the final whistle, the score remains 1–1: FC Lugano held firm despite being a man down, fought back from behind and secured their place in the League Phase of the UEFA Conference League. A qualification achieved through character, sacrifice and the ability to respond in the most difficult moments, crowned by Moncada’s splendid goal.
Attention now turns to Monte Carlo, where tomorrow, Friday 28 August at 13:00, the draw will determine the opponents FC Lugano will face in the League Phase. The bianconeri’s European adventure continues.
MATCH REPORT
: Maccabi Tel Aviv – FC Lugano 1–1
UEFA Conference League – play-off, second leg
, 27 August 2026 – Batumi Arena
Goalscorers: 69’ Peretz, 79’ Moncada.
MACCABI TEL AVIV (4-3-3): Melika; Asante (65’ Ben Harosh), Camara, Shlomo, Revivo; D. Peretz, Sissokho, Shahar (81’ Layous); Davida, Sokler (65’ Madmon), Varela.
Substitutes: Saadia, Mishpati, Rosen, Ben Hamo, Glazer, Noy, Asres, Ben Simon.
Manager: Kenny Miller.
FC LUGANO (3-5-2): von Ballmoos; Papadopoulos (82’ Kendouci), Mai, Delcroix; Zanotti, Bislimi, Grgić, Dos (62’ Kelvin), Cimignani; Steffen (82’ Karimov), Behrens (62’ Moncada).
Substitutes: Ndiaye, Gebhardt, Bichsel, Marques, Castro, Ajdin, Pihlström.
Manager: Mattia Croci-Torti.
Referee: Jérémie Pignard
. Assistant referees: Hicham Zakrani and Aurélien Drouet
. Fourth official: Ruddy Buquet
. VAR and AVAR: Mathieu Vernice and Marc Bollengier
Booked: Papadopoulos (LUG), Zanotti (LUG), Steffen (LUG), Camara (MTA), Bislimi (LUG).
Sent off: Zanotti (LUG)