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Halis Sunnetci 06 August 2026•Update: 06 August 2026 Ten-man Besiktas defeated Czech side Hradec Kralove 1-0 away Thursday in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League third qualifying round tie. Semih Kilicsoy scored the winner in the 80th minute at Malsovicka Arena, eight minutes after the visitors were reduced to 10 men. Besiktas dominated possession in the opening 20 minutes but struggled to create clear scoring opportunities. Hyeon-gyu Oh came close to breaking the deadlock in the 42nd minute when his powerful shot from outside the penalty area struck the crossbar. Hradec Kralove nearly took the lead two minutes later, but Emirhan Topcu cleared Daniel Horak’s goal-bound effort off the line as the first half ended goalless. Besiktas made a strong start to the second half, with Hradec Kralove goalkeeper Adam Zadrazil denying Orkun Kokcu twice in the opening nine minutes before the hosts began to gain control. Besiktas goalkeeper Alexander Nubel made a crucial close-range save in the 70th minute, preventing the hosts from taking the lead. Kassoum Ouattara, who had been booked in the 65th minute, received a second yellow card seven minutes later and was sent off. The 21-year-old summer signing was making his first start for Besiktas. Despite being reduced to 10 men, the Black Eagles broke the deadlock through two substitutes introduced four minutes earlier. In the 80th minute, Kilicsoy headed home after center-back Filip Cihak’s attempted clearance of Wilfred Ndidi’s looping pass fell into his path. Hradec Kralove increased the pressure and created several late chances, but Nubel preserved the visitors’ clean sheet. Return leg in Istanbul The return leg will be played at Tupras Stadium in Istanbul on Aug. 13. The winners will advance to the Europa League playoff round and face the losers of the Dinamo Zagreb-Kauno Zalgiris tie for a place in the league phase. The losing side will drop into the UEFA Conference League playoff round and face the winners of the Panathinaikos-CSKA 1948 matchup.