Both sides had chances to win this UEFA Champions League second qualifying round first-leg tie, but Norwegian side SK Brann will be most pleased with their efforts after a 0-0 draw in Bulgaria against PFC Levski Sofia.
Coach springs surprises
Levski coach Ljubo Petrovic sprang several surprises in his line-up, with defenders Dalibor Dragic and Elin Topuzakov and midfielder Asen Nikolov all included, while regular left-back Ilian Stoyanov was pushed into midfield.
A touch of fortune
The changes seemed to work in the early stages as the Bulgarian champions took the game to their visitors, Brann keeper Ivar Rønningen needing a touch of fortune to prevent Georgi Markov opening the scoring with an excellent long-range shot.
Vital saves
The Norwegians needed time to settle into their game and once they did it became apparent that striker Thorstein Helstad was a real threat. It needed a brilliant save from Georgi Petkov to deny him on 20 minutes, and soon after that the keeper produced another vital block to thwart Petter Furuseth Olsen. As the game swung from end to end, Stoyanov then hit the right post with a ferocious shot from outside the area.
Glorious opportunities to score
The second half saw fewer chances but both sides still had glorious chances to grab the winner. Substitute Todor Kolev had an opportunity to steal the glory for the home side but his header was expertly saved by Ronningen. Then, in the dying seconds, Markov cleared Tommy Knarvik's effort off the line to prevent Levski from conceding an away goal.
'We knew it would be hard'
Levski were left knowing they have a real fight on their hands to go through. Coach Petrovic said: "We knew that it will be very hard for us. Brann are a well organised side and they proved that. I am sure that we still have a chance to qualify and will fight until the end of the second leg."
