Conference League | FC Twente scores a modest victory over Hammarby in the second preliminary round

Sem Steijn broke the spell in the 53rd minute by leaving the goalkeeper without a chance after a brilliant pass. Just before half-time, Michel Flapp hit the crossbar. So the lead was real and Twente would have liked more, but had to be satisfied with a single margin. That’s not an entirely reassuring margin for the Enschede side.

Twente also continued to look for more in the final stage, but it was as if Hammarby was fine with it. The Swedes should have a conditional advantage, as the competition has already reached the halfway mark. But in the final stage in Enschede, time wasted to disrupt Twente.

This worked in the sense that the pace of the match was off the charts and the clock was late. The five-minute extra time was not used either, so Twente will have to work hard on the artificial turf next week in Sweden to stay on the right side of the scoreline in this double.

If new coach Joseph Oosting’s side manage to qualify, they will have to survive two more qualifying rounds before qualifying for the group stage becomes a reality. This means that Twente will hopefully play five European matches for Dutch football throughout August.

You can follow the latest sporting news from football to cyclo-cross and from snooker to biathlon here on Eurosport.