▲ Oh Hyeon-gyu looks for a scoring opportunity
The winner of the "Korean Derby" in the UEFA Europa League (UEL) qualifying stage was Oh Hyeon-gyu of Besiktas.
Turkey's Besiktas defeated Denmark's Midtjylland 2-0 in the away leg of the second round of the 2026-2027 UEL qualifiers held at the MCH Arena in Herning, Denmark, on July 31 (KST).
Having won the first leg at home 1-0 on July 24, Besiktas secured victories in both legs for a 3-0 aggregate score, confirming their advancement to the third qualifying round.
The match drew attention as a showdown between national team forwards Oh Hyeon-gyu and Cho Gue-sung, both of whom starred at the 2026 North and Central America World Cup.
Both players started side by side and took to the pitch.
Although Oh Hyeon-gyu did not record an attacking point, he roamed the front line until being substituted in the 40th minute of the second half, contributing to the victory by drawing a red card from opposing defender Martin Erlic.
Having completely seized control of the match following Erlic's sending-off just eight minutes into the second half, Besiktas broke the deadlock when Milot Rashica scored the opening goal in the 25th minute of the second half, followed six minutes later by an additional penalty goal from Orkun Kökçü to seal the match.
Cho Gue-sung played the full match and fought hard, but failed to find the back of the net.
Lee Han-beom, whose imminent transfer to Belgium's Club Brugge has been rumored recently, was substituted in the 12th minute of the second half to play out the remaining time, but had to watch his team's defeat.
Having successfully landed in the third qualifying round, Besiktas will compete against Hradec Kralove of the Czech Republic for a spot in the main tournament playoffs.
Midtjylland, eliminated from the UEL stage, will move down to the lower-tier UEFA Conference League to face Bohemians of Ireland.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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