You spend all week in training on patterns of play that lead to chance creation… and then you go and win a game without having a single shot on target.
That’s what happened to Lincoln Red Imps, who pulled off the near-impossible by defeating their UEFA Conference League rivals Hajduk Split despite not forcing the Croatian side’s goalkeeper to make a single save.
The game, played out in front of 1,309 spectators at the Europa Point Stadium in Gibraltar, was not one for the purists… with just one shot on target in the entire 90 minutes.
And that went the way of Hajduk, who must have flown home to Croatia scratching their heads as to how they were unable to win the contest.
Instead, it was an own goal from their defender, Dennis Hadzikadunic, that settled matters in the favour of Lincoln Red Imps – the first time in UEFA Conference history a club has won a match without a single shot on target.
The hosts swung a free kick into the penalty area that brushed the head of a Hadjuk player. The ball hit the post, ricocheted away and struck Hadzikadunic, before nestling in the back of the net.
That 89th-minute goal was a hammer blow to the Croatians, who had otherwise dominated the game without finding a breakthrough.
Lincoln Red Imps had lost their opening two UEFA Conference League games to Brann and FC Twente, so they no doubt couldn’t give a hoot as to how the winning goal went in.
The official X account of the Red Imps described it as a ‘European night to remember’. For Hadjuk Split, it’s one they’ll be hoping to forget in a hurry.
See all the stats from the match here