Advantage West Ham and Basel with stunning UECL semi-final comebacks | OneFootball

The Europa Conference League semi-finals kicked off on Thursday and the drama was on full display in the first leg!

Here is what went down.

West Ham fight back as AZ Alkmaar implode

Scorers: Benrahma 67′, Antonio 75′; Reijnders 41′

West Ham needed a bit of luck to kickstart a comeback over AZ Alkmaar and win 2-1 at home.

The visitors controlled the ball during the first 45 minutes, forcing the hosts to change their game place slightly to make their presence known, and it remained tense with three shots apiece.

In controversial fashion, AZ Alkmaar scored first after capitalising on a loose ball following a challenge on Lucas Paqueta.

The Eredivisie side hit on the counter, where Tijjani Reijnders beat Alphonse Areola at his near post with a long-range effort. VAR did review the push on the West Ham ace, but the goal stood.

Coming out into the second half, David Moyes clearly talked with his squad, and they ramped up the pressure forcing their opponents into a mistake.

Mat Ryan mistimed his punch and connected with Jarrod Bowen’s face, allowing Said Benrahma to smash home the subsequent penalty for 1-1. The club has scored all five of their spot kicks in the competition.

And after conceding, the visitors cracked again as momentum carried over for West Ham less than 10 minutes later.

Declan Rice’s cross hit off a defender who appeared to clear the ball off the line with his hand, although it fell to Michail Antonio, who made no mistake from point-blank range for 2-1.

The result means it is still all to play for, but West Ham hold a slight advantage heading into the second leg.

Basel stun Fiorentina in stoppage time

Scorers: Cabral 25′; Diouf 72′, Amdouni 90+2′

Over in Italy, Fiorentina looked like they would make the most of playing at home in the first leg, but Basel fought back to win 2-1 in style.

The Italian side controlled the match over 90 minutes with 60% possession and 15 shots to eight and subsequently opened the scoring due to their dominance.

Arthur Cabral’s flicked-on header eventually turned things 1-0, and he didn’t celebrate against his former club. It’s now seven goals in 12 games for him this season.

But Fiorentina will be frustrated not to have put the game to bed and instead allowed Basel to get back into the match.

Nineteen-year-old Andy Diouf’s brilliant solo run out of nothing turned things 1-1 to silence the home fans.

And as the stunned hosts still couldn’t find a way to get back in the match with roughly 15 minutes to go, the visitors claimed all three points at the death.

Zeki Amdouni volleyed home for 2-1 following a corner and ensured Basel carried the advantage back to Switzerland.