By Fatih Erel
ISTANBUL (AA) – Turkey's Akhisar was defeated by Russia's Krasnodar 0-1 in their first match in Europa League 2018-19 group stage on Thursday.
The UEFA Europa League group stage began on Thursday.
Akhisar played against Russia's Krasnodar in Group J at home. The first and last goal of the game came at 26th minute by Krasnodar's Viktor Claesson. His low strike put Russian side ahead.
The teams met for first time in UEFA competition as Akhisar made European debut in this match.
Akhisar had qualified for the Europa League as 2017/18 Turkish Cup winners, while Krasnodar finished fourth in Russia last season.
The first two teams each from 12 groups will reach the last 32 round of the Europa League. The final will be held in the Baku Olympic Stadium in Azerbaijan on May 29.
Turkey's Galatasaray, the Lions, is the only Turkish club that won the cup in 1999-2000.
The results of the matches kick off at 1755 GMT:
Group G: Rapid Wien 2-0 Spartak Moskva, Villarreal 2-2 Rangers
Group H: Lazio 2-1 Apollon, Marseille 1-2 Frankfurt
Group I: Genk 2-0 Malmo, Besiktas 3-1 Sarpsborg
Group J: Akhisar 0-1 Krasnodar, Sevilla 5-1 Standard Liège
Group K: Dynamo Kyiv 2-2 Astana, Rennes 2-1 Jablonec
Group L: Vidi 0-2 BATE, PAOK 0-1 Chelsea
The matches kick off at 2000 GMT:
Group A: Ludogorets v Leverkusen, AEK Larnaca v Zurich
Group B: Celtic v Rosenborg, Leipzig v Salzburg
Group C: Slavia Praha v Bordeaux, Kobenhavn v Zenit
Group D: Dinamo Zagreb v Fenerbahce, Spartak Trnava v Anderlecht
Group E: Arsenal v Vorskla, Sporting CP v Qarabag
Group F: Olympiacos v Betis, Dudelange v AC Milan
