Rayo Vallecano have put themselves firmly in control of their UEFA Conference League quarter-final tie after a commanding 3-0 victory over AEK Athens at home on Thursday evening.
The second leg will take place next Thursday at 9:00 pm in Athens, with the winner set to face either FSV Mainz 05 or RC Strasbourg in the semi-finals.
The Spanish side bypassed the play-off round thanks to a fifth-place finish in their group and advanced past Turkish outfit Samsunspor 3-2 on aggregate in the round of 16.
AEK, who finished third in their section, also entered directly into the knockout stage, overcoming NK Celje 4-2 over two legs.
Rayo made a blistering start, opening the scoring after just two minutes. Álvaro García’s precise cutback from the byline was turned in by Ilias Akhomach, whose slightly mis-hit strike still found the back of the net.
Earlier in the move, Florian Lejeune had denied Luka Jovic with a critical block. Lejeune later looked set to double Rayo’s advantage after cleverly redirecting an Akhomach effort with his heel, but the goal was ruled out for offside.
AEK had their chances as well. Barnabás Varga’s header hit the post following a deflection off Rayo goalkeeper Augusto Batalla, while Aboubakary Koita failed to capitalize on a one-on-one, with Pep Chavarría blocking his follow-up attempt.
Rayo doubled their lead just before halftime. Akhomach’s shot was initially saved by Strakosha, but Unai López was on hand to slam home the rebound and make it 2-0.
The second half remained largely quiet, though Rayo added a third. Filipe Relvas handled the ball in the box, and after a VAR review, a penalty was awarded.
Isi Palazón converted from the spot to seal the 3-0 win, leaving AEK with a tough task in next week’s return leg.
