Ryan Camenzuli (left) runs to his team-mates to celebrate their shoot-out victory over Levski Sofia. PHOTO: LAP IMAGES
Scored incredible stoppage-time winner to send tie into extra-time
Ryan Camenzuli’s stoppage-time wonder goal handed Ħamrun Spartans a famous 2-1 victory at Levski Sofia while sending the UEFA Conference League third qualifying tie into extra-time.
Eventually, the Spartans managed to seize their chance with Matteo Fedele burying the decisive penalty to send Ħamrun into the play-offs.
Camenzuli’s goal was the perfect definition of a clutch goal. In sports, a clutch performance refers to the strength, concentration, and perfection of an execution in the dying minutes of an event.
The former Birkirkara and Floriana player struck a brilliant curling effort with his exceptional left foot that gave the Levski Sofia players no chance of keeping out.
What’s more incredible about it, is that the goal arrived within seconds from Levski’s equaliser which had seemed all but dash Ħamrun’s chances of progressing.
Camenzuli has been a brilliant acquisition by the Spartans and he delivered with another hard-working performance on the left flank, picking up an assist on Guillaumier’s goal as well even though the latter’s first attempt was blocked by the Levski Sofia custodian.
“This is history for us. It means a lot for this prestigious club, for us players, for the technical staff, and to everyone involved at Ħamrun Spartans,” Camenzuli told the Times of Malta.
“Last but not least, this is also a huge win for the supporters of this club.”
Ħamrun’s qualification reflects also the quality that this team has and the work that has been done both by the administration and the technical staff to gel this squad of players as quickly as possible.
Moments of quality often determine games on this stage and so far, Ħamrun could bank on several players who delivered big performances.
For Camenzuli, this was his 23rd appearance in European competitions and his second goal – his first was in a 1-4 defeat against Hungary’s Diosgyor while donning the colours of Birkirkara back in 2014.
The Malta international believes that his team has enough quality of competing at this stage and they have shown time and again that they deserve to be in this position.
“You cannot win games like these if you don’t have technical qualities and belief in your own abilities,” Camenzuli said.
“At any point of the game, we never lost faith in ourselves and believed that we could achieve what we did at the end.”
