Omonia Nicosia beat St. Truiden 4:2 in the Europa League play-offs at the DSP Stadium on Wednesday, turning last week's 1:0 defeat into a statement of intent. The Cypriot side took control early and never looked back, with Luis Diony at the heart of everything.
Diony opened the scoring from the spot in the sixteenth minute before adding a second just thirteen minutes later. St. Truiden responded through Ilias Sebaoui's penalty in the thirty-third minute, making it 2:1 at that stage. The visitors should have levelled again but Sebaoui picked up a booking in the fortieth minute, and then Diony restored the two-goal cushion in the fiftieth.
And here's the thing — the match could have been more open if not for the bookings that changed the tempo. Nikolaos Panagiotou pulled one back for Omonia in the eighty-second minute, only for Sebaoui to strike again in stoppage time. The final goal came in the ninety-second minute, sealing a comeback that caught many by surprise.
The statistics tell a different story from the scoreboard. St. Truiden had more attacks at 91 compared to 80 and dominated possession at 53 per cent, yet Omonia created five big chances to the visitors' two. The hosts' expected goals of 3.39 against 1.85 shows they were far more clinical when it mattered.
By then, Omonia had extended their confidence after last week's setback. Five substitutions came in the second half alone, with Diony himself replaced in the seventy-sixth minute. The result keeps the tie alive and gives the Cypriots something to build on.