Noah Draw With Zimbru in First Conference League Qualifier

Armenian club Noah earned a 1-1 away draw against Moldova’s Zimbru in the first leg of the UEFA Conference League second qualifying round.

The hosts opened the scoring in the 43rd minute when Ștefan Bîța found the net following a counterattack.

Despite conceding first, Noah controlled much of the match, attacked more frequently and registered more shots on goal. The Armenian side also won nine corners, one of which led to the equaliser in the 88th minute.

Substitute Gor Manvelyan delivered the corner, and fellow substitute Valentin Costache converted the opportunity to level the score.

Overall, Noah were the stronger side and came closer to securing victory. The away draw gives the team a good chance of progressing to the next round. The second leg will be played in Abovyan on July 30.

The winner of the tie will face either BATE or Sion. The first match between those two teams also ended in a 1-1 draw.

Stone Mambo, Dani Figueira and Mario González made their Noah debuts in the starting line-up. Marco Lazetić and Brian Oddei also made their first appearances for the club after coming on as substitutes.

Noah: Dani Figueira — Eric Boakye, Stone Mambo, Nathaniel Saintini, David Sualehe (Hambardzumyan, 83) — Gustavo Sangaré (Manvelyan, 83), Aram Khamoyan (Oddei, 46), Takuto Oshima — Hélder Ferreira, Marin Jakoliš (Costache, 64) — Mario González (Lazetić, 64).