A heavily changed Feyenoord lost their UEFA Europa League opener against Braga, falling 1-0 to the Portuguese outfit after a lulling tie.
Sporting Braga manager Carlos Vicens changed his side yet again as the Spanish gaffer tries to turn his team's luck around after failing to win any of the last three games.
Ricardo Horta started for the second time since recovering from injury and was partnered by Amine El Ouazzani and Rodrigo Zalazar Martinez up front. Former Monaco and Wolves ace Joao Moutinho started in his 163rd total European appearance.
Meanwhile, Robin van Persie changed his Feyenoord side in no less than seven places. Malcolm Jeng and Casper Tengstedt were given full debuts, while Gijs Smal, Bart Nieuwkoop, Oussama Targhalline, Gouassou Diarra, and Goncalo Borges were all given surprise starts.
A stale first half saw most of its action happen in the tail end. After Braga were denied a penalty by Montenegrin referee Nikola Dabanovic, Feyenoord left-back Gijs Smal got a first worthwhile chance, but failed to get Feyenoord on top.
Shortly after, Ricardo Horta almost fired the home side in front with their biggest chance of the half, but he, too, failed to change the scoreline.
Late difference
After the break, less action followed. Substitute Diego came closest to a goal in the first thirty minutes after half-time, curling the ball just wide of Timon Wellenreuther's goal.
Canadian striker Cyle Larin, who replaced the invisible Tengstedt after 62 minutes, got very close to an opening goal in the 78th minute when his header hit the post. It ended up being worth nothing as he was later flagged for offside.
Braga finally broke the deadlock in the 79th minute, courtesy of substitute Fran Navarro. A quick attack got Victor Gomez the opportunity to give a low cross in a largely empty box and find Navarro, who escaped from Watanabe's marking and eeked the ball in via Wellenreuther's near post.
Feyenoord thought they had stolen a point after all when Hadj Moussa found Cyle Larin at the back post in the 88th minute, but Larin was flagged for offside again.
A late offensive did not yield a result for Feyenoord, who opened their UEFA Europa League account with an uninspiring loss to Braga. Van Persie's men host Aston Villa next, with their meeting in Rotterdam scheduled for Thursday, October 2nd.
Braga continue their European campaign in Scotland, where they'll meet Celtic on October 2nd.
Check out all the advanced match and player statistics on Flashscore!
