Awer Mabil’s FC Midtjylland suffered a blip in their Danish Superliga playoff campaign overnight, conceding a stoppage-time equaliser in a 2-2 draw with Esbjerg.
Caltex Socceroo attacker Mabil was introduced for teammate Mayron George on the hour mark as Esbjerg’s Yuri Yakovenko cancelled out Frank Onyeka’s 47th-minute opener.
Midtjylland retook the lead through skipper Jakob Poulsen 10 minutes after Mabil entered the pitch, but were left frustrated when Esbjerg’s Rodolph Austin levelled affairs deep into added time at the end of the match.
Mabil’s Midtjylland have begun their playoff campaign with back-to-back draws and trail leaders FC Copenhagen by five points in the overall table. A spot in the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round is at stake for the Wolves, who also have a Danish Cup Final against Brondby to come on May 18.
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Over in the Austrian Bundesliga, Mabil's Australia teammate James Jeggo was also involved in playoff action, with his Austria Wien team beaten 1-0 by Sturm Graz.
Sandi Lovric scored the match-winner with 10 minutes remaining for Sturm Graz – Jeggo’s former team, and the club the former Melbourne Victory youth helped win the 2017/18 Austrian Cup 11 months ago.
Meanwhile, PSV Eindhoven have been overtaken by Ajax at the Eredivisie summit, with Trent Sainsbury and Aziz Behich’s side made to settle for a 3-3 draw away at 10-man Vitesse.
UEFA Champions League quarter-finalists Ajax surged into top spot thanks to a 4-1 win over Willem II the day before, while PSV – with just one win in their last three – required an added-time penalty from Mexican starlet Hirving Lozano to salvage a draw.
Sainsbury and Behich were unused substitutes.
