Lincoln Red Imps Beat Inter Club d'Escaldes 3-1 in UCL Qualifier

Lincoln Red Imps secured a 3-1 victory over Inter Club d'Escaldes in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League first qualifying round at Europa Point Stadium in Gibraltar on Thursday evening.

The Gibraltar champions, under coach Juan Manuel Pavón, struck twice in quick succession during the first half. Nano converted a penalty in the 16th minute after Jaouad Erraji fouled Manu Toledano inside the area. Toledano added a second four minutes later, capitalizing on a poor clearance by Anwar Hernández.

Inter pulled one back in first-half stoppage time through an own goal by Lincoln's Christian Rutjens, who deflected a team move past Javi Díaz as the Andorrans gained momentum late in the period. They carried that into the second half, with Antonio Otegui—or Pablo Molina, according to some reports—hitting the crossbar early on.

Lincoln regained control after the hour mark. Toni García struck the post and Yussef Flalhi Idrissi missed an open goal before Facundo Álvarez sealed the win in the 67th minute with a heel flick from a corner. Inter mounted late pressure, including a Jaouad Erraji header cleared off the line by Nauzet Santana, a Domi Berlanga effort blocked by Julliani Eersteling, and a Juan Cámara shot against the post, but the scoreline held.

Referee João Gonçalves issued yellow cards to Lincoln's Mandi and Inter's Manu Toledano and Anwar Hernández amid warm conditions.

Lincoln Red Imps: Nauzet Santana; Joe, Julliani Eersteling (Jolley 75/76'), Bernardo Lopes, Toni (Pinto/Clara Pinto 79'); Álex Mula (Flalhi/Yussef 59'), Christian Rutjens, Facundo Álvarez (García/Rubén G. 79'), Nano, Mandi, Manu Toledano (Gomez/Kike Gómez 59'). Coach: Juan Manuel Pavón.

Inter Club d'Escaldes: Javi Díaz; Torres/Jilmar Torres, Hernández/Anwar, Erraji Berroug/Jaouad Erraji, Pochettino (Dacu/Laminem? 75'); Pablo Molina (David López 63'), Alonso, Otegui (Diaby 75'), Berlanga/Domi Berlanga, Borja Arellano (Paredes/Toni Paredes 63'), Chouaib/Faysal (Juan Cámara 57'). Coach: Felip Ortiz.

The Lliga Multisegur Assegurances champions, who retained most of their squad and added Marc Rodríguez, Soule, Domi Berlanga, Juanda, and Toni Paredes, now face a two-goal deficit for the return leg at Estadi Nacional in Encamp on Tuesday at 18:00. The pitch there features fresh turf installed by the Andorran Football Federation. Failure to advance would send them into the Conference League third qualifying round.

Ahead of the tie, Ortiz described Lincoln as a challenging opponent with tactical changes under Pavón, quality additions, and vast UEFA experience, including 30 domestic titles and a memorable 2016 home win over Celtic. Midfielder Juan Cámara, who debuted for Barcelona in the 2014 Champions League, called it a key opportunity and stressed aiming for a solid away result. Sources highlighted Inter's strong finish to the first half, promising second-half start, and late chances as reasons for optimism ahead of the remuntada.