It was pure chaos in Poland as Lech Poznan and Sunderland drew 1-1 – though it could have been a lot more for both sides.
The Black Cats started on the front foot, taking the game to the hosts. Timur Tutierov scored the opener just two minutes into the match, making it look like it would be an easy and comfortable win.
However, Poznan quickly reacted with a wave of attacks. Less than 60 seconds after the goal, they had a two-shot sequence that ended with a double save from Robin Roefs. And that would not be the only one of the night for the Dutch goalkeeper.
The Polish side would only equalise in the 70th minute thanks to a corner, but there could have been many more goals both ways before and after that.
Why was Lech Poznan vs Sunderland one of the best games in Europe this season?
Big chances parade
The 1-1 score in the end does not reflect at all what the game was. And even the big chance count, which favoured Lech Poznan (4) to Sunderland (2).
According to Opta’s expected goals model, both teams had six shots worth 0.15 xG. That’s the first time this has happened in a Europa League game this season.
The host’s chances felt even louder, due to how close-range a few of them were. Three of those six chances were actually worth 0.47 xG or more, but Roefs saved all three.
Meanwhile the Black Cats had more attacking production and a few more half chances in addition to the clear-cut ones.
Malick Fofana (6), Habib Diarra (4) and Nordi Mukiele (3) stood out in terms of attempts – but all wasteful.
Shot fest
Speaking of which, this was a record-breaking game in terms of shots in the Europa League so far.
It was the first time both teams managed to produce 2+ expected goals, with 2.5 for Lech Poznan and 2.8 for Sunderland.
But it was also the first match in which both sides took more than 15 shots in the current edition of the competition. As well as the only one with more than 40 shots combining the two teams. Only Benfica (26) vs Celtic (14) had reached 40 in this regard.
And of those 40, it didn’t feel like any of them was a hopeless attempt just to fill the stat sheet. 33 of them came from inside the box (83%), which is the second highest percentage of any game in the Europa League season. Only Ferencvaros and Torreense took a greater share of the shots in their game from the penalty area (86%).
Poor defending all around
Of course, none of this would have happened if both Lech Poznan and Sunderland had defended reasonably well.
With the Black Cats having a strong start on the front foot, the hosts had to commit most of their bodies in defence. And even then, they still left huge spaces to be exploited.
The midfield in particular had a lot of holes. Their aggressive man-to-man 4-4-2/4-2-4 out of possession meant that there would be nobody there once Sunderland, as per usual, overloaded the wings with their midfielders and dragged opponents out of position.
Regis Le Bris, as per usual, also wanted numbers inside the box for crosses. Lech Poznan matched – and even surpassed – those numbers, but their players weren’t well distributed there.
Which is ironic considering the distribution of defenders was the exact reason why Sunderland later conceded the equaliser. All 10 outfield players were defending the corner inside the six-yard box. They cleared the ball but only as far as Leo Bengtsson, who fired it first time and made it 1-1.
And the midfield was also a problem for the Black Cats. Granit Xhaka, Habib Diarra and Jules Ahoka looked slow to track back. Lech Poznan were always finding players between the lines while Sunderland’s midfielders were trying to react and the defensive line was running backwards.
They often exploited the right flank, taking advantage of the lack of spacial awareness and overall chemistry between Luke O’Nien and Dayann Methalie. The left-back became more combative as the game went on, but still looked lost on a number of defensive sequences.
The only thing that did work defensively for the Black Cats was their high press. Le Bris set them up very aggressively and it paid off a number of times.
They recorded seven shot-ending high turnovers tonight, which is the second most of any team in a Europa League game this season. Including Tutierov’s goal early on after Nilson Angulo intercepted a pass that fell short and crossed it. The Ecuadorian did the same thing one more time in the second half, but Mukiele didn’t capitalise.