Center-back Pontus Jansson gave Malmö the lead in the 28th minute when he headed in a corner. At that point, it was closer to an extension for the home team than an equalizer, but three minutes before the break came the cold shower. Then, Brazilian Taison scored 1-1 – a goal that was approved only after a long VAR assessment.
In the 67th minute came the goal that put MFF in the driver's seat – at least for a while. Newly substituted Anders Christiansen took a corner and after a tangled situation, Sebastian Nanasi could score the 2-1 goal.
With a quarter left, the next cold shower came. MFF lost Abdul Rahman Baba on a corner and the Ghanaian could easily score the equalizer in front of 18,658 spectators at the stadium in Malmö.
The return match in Thessaloniki will be played on Tuesday next week. With a win, Malmö is clear for the playoff – the final qualifying step – to the Champions League.
With a loss, a continued qualifying journey in the Europa League awaits. The Scanians have gone far enough in the Champions League qualifying to have guaranteed play in at least the Conference League.
