Europa League round-up: Teenage Chelsea debutant shines in PAOK win

In the penultimate round of Europa League fixtures this season, Arsenal and Chelsea both coasted to wins in their respective groups, but the match of gameweek five came from Norway. Sarpsborg hosted Besiktas, where the Norwegian side cruised into a 2-0 lead after just six minutes. They led until the hour mark, when the Turkish giants launched their comeback in fine fashion. 

Jeremain Lens set Besiktas on their path to victory with his first after 62 minutes before rounding off the three points with a late winner. In between, the Dutchman provided the assist for Vagner Love’s equaliser, with his match-winning performance earning him a perfect 10 in the win. Indeed, Lens is our Europa League player of the week, with the wideman hitting the back of the net with his two shots and providing his one assist from three key passes.

Chelsea teenager Callum Hudson-Odoi marked his first competitive start of the season with a man of the match display in a 4-0 win over PAOK, landing a WhoScored rating of 9.63 in the crushing victory. The 18-year-old scored with one of his five shots at Stamford Bridge and provided one assist from four key passes. An additional return of three successful dribbles and a 93.2% pass success rate capped off a fine full senior Chelsea debut, with the teenage winger more than deserving of his spot in the team of the week. 

Rounding off the trio of top performers is Sporting midfielder Bruno Fernandes, who gained a WhoScored rating of 9.20 in their 6-1 win at Qarabag FK. The 24-year-old netted twice in the resounding victory, netting with two of his three shots. On top of that, Fernandes chipped in with two interceptions, one tackle and one successful dribble in a man of the match display for the Liga NOS giants. 

Conversely, it was a midweek round of games to forget for Icelandic shotstopper Hannes Thor Halldorsson. Not only did he ship six, saving only one of the seven shots on target he faced, but he was also responsible for Fernandes’ first and Sporting’s second goal of the night as such a pitiful display returned a WhoScored rating of just 3.46, the worst in gameweek five of the Europa League.