Aussies Abroad Wrap: Ryan, Mooy return to PL action with win over Arsenal & draw with Leicester

Aaron Mooy and Maty Ryan’s Brighton & Hove Albion could not have asked for a better way to kickstart their Premier League campaign after a last gasp winner saw them edge Arsenal 2-1 in their first match back since the league restarted.

The Socceroos duo had to bide their time with their last Premier League victory having arrived on December 28 last year.

Ryan pulled off a string of spectacular saves while Mooy came close to opening the scoring with a venomous volley on the edge of the 18-yard-area.

However, it was Arsenal who broke the deadlock thanks to Nicolas Pepe’s soaring effort on 65 minutes.

Brighton captain Lewis Dunk scored the equaliser 10 minutes later before Neal Maupay grabbed the winner in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

On Wednesday morning AEST, Mooy and Ryan were in action again for Brighton against Leicester and played out a goalless draw.

Brad Smith made his debut for Cardiff City in the English Championship on Sunday.

The Aussie defender came on for the final seven minutes as his side claimed a surprise 2-1 victory against first placed Leeds United.

Massimo Luongo’s Sheffield Wednesday salvaged a point at home to Nottingham Forest as they drew 1-1 in their first match back.

Luongo played just over 80 minutes before making way for fellow midfielder, Alex Hunt.

Adam Federici was absent for Stoke City as they drew 1-1 away to Reading on Saturday.

Two Aussies went head to head overnight as Awer Mabil’s Midtjylland faced off against Mustafa Amini’s AGF Aarhus in the Danish Superligaen.

Aarhus got the better of Midtjylland in what was a thrilling contest which saw Amini’s side topple the leaders 4-3.

Mabil played the full game for his side while Amini was absent for AGF.

In K League action, Brandon O’Neill put in a full shift for Pohang Steelers as they defeated Gangwon FC 2-0 on Saturday night.

The win saw them leapfrog their opponents into fourth position on the league ladder.

Jason Davidson was absent for Ulsan Hyundai as they triumphed 2-0 away to FC Seoul on Saturday night.

Terry Antonis and Adam Taggart were on the wrong end of a 3-1 scoreline as their Suwon Bluewings lost to Daegu FC on Sunday.

Taggart featured for 82 minutes while Antonis was an unused substitute.

Rashid Mahazi put in a full shift for Incheon United as they fell to a 1-0 defeat at home to Busan I’Park on Sunday.

Busan’s victory means that Incheon are now the only side in the Korean top flight which are yet to register a win this campaign.

Trent Sainsbury and Nikita Rukavytsya had cause to celebrate after their Maccabi Haifa secured their first league win since the Israeli Premier League resumed in May.

One goal was all that was needed as they overcame Hapoel Be’er Sheva 1-0 on Saturday.

Sainsbury played the full game in his usual centre back role while Rukavytsya played upfront and was substituted in the dying moments of the encounter.

In the Austrian Bundesliga, James Holland’s LASK Linz recorded a 2-0 win over Sturm Graz on Monday morning.

Graz ended the match with nine men after two of their players were given their marching orders.

James Jeggo wasn’t in Austria Wien’s matchday squad on Saturday as they registered a 2-1 win over a 10-man WSG Swarovski Tirol.

In the German Bundesliga, Mathew Leckie was an unused substitute for Hertha Berlin as they triumphed 2-0 against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.

Brandon Borrello was also on the bench for SC Freiburg as they fell to a 3-1 defeat against newly crowned champions Bayern Munich.

The loss to Bayern ended Freiburg’s European dreams with four points separating them from the final European berth ahead of the league’s final round this weekend.

In the Turkish SuperLig, Aziz Behich was an unused substitute for Istanbul Basaksehir as they won 2-1 away to strugglers Ankaragucu.

In the Bulgarian Premier League, Tomi Juric was absent for CSKA Sofia as they came from behind to secure a 3-3 draw against rivals Levski Sofia on Saturday.

Heading to Serbia and Milos Degenek’s SuperLiga season ended on Saturday as his FK Crvena zvezda won their final match 2-1 against Proleter.

Degenek put in a full shift for his side as they ended their campaign on a positive note.