Polish referee Damian Sylwestrzak stopped the UEFA Europa League match between Red Bull Salzburg and Pafos after 17 minutes because of heavy rain. Spectators took shelter from the downpour as the official halted play in the third qualifying round fixture.
Groundstaff began draining water from the pitch once weather conditions improved, while Sylwestrzak tested how the ball bounced on the surface. Play resumed after a delay of nearly two hours, with the teams remaining tied at 0:0 at halftime.
European Qualification Paths and Player Details
The winner of the tie between Red Bull Salzburg and Cypriot side Pafos will advance to the Europa League play-offs against the loser of the matchup between Mjallby and Slovan Bratislava. Slovan Bratislava holds a 2:1 lead after the first leg.
The loser between Salzburg and Pafos will enter the fourth round of Conference League qualifying to play the winner of FK Auda and Dinamo City. Latvian club FK Auda won their first match 1:0.
Polish midfielder Bartosz Mazurek was named on the substitute bench for Red Bull Salzburg. The Austrian club paid €7.5 million for Mazurek, with Jagiellonia Bialystok potentially earning up to €10 million including bonuses.
The match occurred during third-round qualifiers involving five Polish teams across European competitions. Lech Poznan won 1:0 against KI Klaksvik, Jagiellonia Bialystok defeated Glasgow Rangers 2:1, Rakow Czestochowa drew 0:0 with Hammarby, GKS Katowice lost 0:2 to Hapoel Tel Aviv, and Gornik Zabrze lost 0:1 to Ferencvaros.
