Bamidele Yusuf Inspires Ferencvaros to Europa League Victory with Goal and Two Assists Against Celtic
Nigerian forward Bamidele Yusuf put on a masterclass at Celtic Park, directly influencing all three goals as Ferencvaros kicked off their UEFA Europa League league-phase campaign with a commanding 3-1 victory over Celtic.
If you were watching the action in Glasgow on Thursday night, you saw a player operating at the peak of his powers.
The Green Eagles needed a big performance on foreign soil, and the 25-year-old winger delivered right from the opening whistle.
In the 20th minute, Kristoffer Zachariassen picked out Yusuf, who expertly cut inside before unleashing a effort towards the far corner.
A slight deflection off Celtic’s Liam Scales sent the ball nestling into the bottom corner, giving the visitors a dream start.
The Hoops responded just before the break through Mika Baur’s 44th-minute equalizer following good work by Kieran Tierney, but the home side’s joy was short-lived.
Just as the Bhoys thought they had wrestled back control, Yusuf turned provider in first-half stoppage time.
He picked out Zachariassen, who finished with a cheekily executed backheel to restore the Hungarian champions’ lead before the referee blew for half-time.
Any hopes of a Scottish comeback were effectively put to bed just two minutes after the restart. Yusuf registered his second assist of the night by setting up Daniel Arzani, who curled a sublime effort into the top corner to seal the 3-1 win.
By the time he was substituted for Jonathan Levi in the 66th minute, the Nigerian attacker had already completed his damage. Beyond his goal and two assists, Yusuf created the most chances on the pitch (4) in a dominant Man of the Match display.
This performance continues a red-hot streak for the forward, who also scored in a 2-2 draw against Ujpest in his last domestic outing.
Across all competitions this season, Yusuf has now tallied 8 goal contributions (5 goals, 3 assists) in 16 appearances—including crucial strikes against Trabzonspor and Vojvodina in the European qualifiers.
