AMSTERDAM – A pair of Americans took part in tight Europa League round-of-32 opening legs on Thursday, with Aron Jóhannsson and AZ Alkmaar escaping with a 1-0 victory over Czech hosts Slovan Liberec.
The US forward went without a shot on goal, but was effective in the link-up game. Thanks to Nick Viergever's last-minute strike, the Cheese Farmers will return home for next week's second leg with a slim advantage.
Meanwhile, Brad Friedel and Tottenham ended up on the wrong side of a late 1-0 decider at Ukrainian outfit Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk.
The Spurs backup took over for the night, making five saves. However, Friedel could do nothing about a perfectly placed 81st minute spot kick by Yevhen Konoplyanka.
