More than 1,500 people took the Vallecas neighborhood to Athens this Thursday to support their team. Their players suffered the Athenian hell. They really suffered. Íñigo Pérez’s team saw how AEK tied the tie in 50 minutes. But happiness after suffering is happiness times two. The 3-0 that equalized the contest seemed to break Rayo’s dream. But the courage of Vallecas appeared. Isi, the captain, appeared to show that at Rayo, as their coach said in the preview, they are specialists in building or fixing from the ruins. The Murcian scored the definitive 3-1 to take the neighborhood, for the first time in its history, to a European semifinal, where they will face Strasbourg.
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Íñigo Pérez started in Athens with the same starting eleven that gave him such a good result in the first leg. AEK, on the other hand, with three changes. Two of them due to the significant absences of Luka Jovic and Mantalos. The Madrid team had a clear mission: hold on in the first minutes and try to strike with a goal to knock the Greeks down.
It was a very solid start from the Rayo squad, who could have taken the lead in an action where Ratiu, with Strakosha beaten on the ground after clearing a shot from Isi, sent the ball wide. Rayo tried to steal and quickly counterattack, but in the 13th minute came the first blow. A powerful throw-in from Pilios into the area, an increasingly common action in today’s football, ended with Ciss on the ground after a body clash with Zini and the Angolan forward — Jovic’s substitute — controlled and fired a cannon shot with his left foot to pierce Batalla’s goal.
The goal was an adrenaline rush for the Greeks, who besieged the area of a Rayo that was struggling with long balls that reached nowhere. Íñigo was desperate on the sideline and asked his forwards for more help when defending. But the resistance exercise broke again after the half-hour mark when a series of dribbles by Koita in the area ended with the Mauritanian on the ground after a tackle by Ratiu. The referee pointed to the penalty spot and Marin was in charge of making it 2-0 despite Batalla touching the ball on the shot. The Greek leader was showing its power and Rayo was begging for halftime.
😨 AEK Athens ties the tie.
Rayo Vallecano falls 3-0 in Greece…#UECL #LaCasaDelFútbol pic.twitter.com/1BOMIRWwqfRead more Alejandro Burillo dies, businessman and influential football executive in Mexico
— Movistar Plus+ Deportes (@MPlusDeportes) April 16, 2026
For the second half, Rayo’s coach left out a desperate Ilias Akhomach with a yellow card in the first half and introduced Alemao at the front to let De Frutos take the Moroccan’s position. But barely five minutes after the restart, AEK would tie the tie. Kutesa crossed very comfortably inside the area and Zini, unopposed and with a great jump, headed for the 3-0.
Rayo, totally undone, was the one on the canvas. But not dead. Isi, the captain, appeared to keep alive the flame of Vallecas’ hope. The Murcian took advantage of a through pass from a newly entered Pedro Díaz to win position over his defender, nail the ball into the top corner, and revive the Vallecano team.
Half an hour of suffering remained for Vallecas to be in the semifinals. They had to withstand the onslaughts of an AEK with the team thrown forward and with its lines split. Now yes, Rayo neutralized the Greek attacks and De Frutos could finish the job with a shot hitting the post in the 94th minute. Final whistle, players collapsed on the ground, delirium in the stands. Rayo reached historic semifinals 25 years after falling in the Europa League quarterfinals against Alavés. The dream is getting closer and closer.
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