Bryan Linssen scored twice in 26 second-half minutes as NEC Nijmegen came from behind to beat Omonia Nicosia 3-1 at the Goffertstadion and climb to seven points in the Europa League. Loïs Diony had given the Cypriots a first-half lead, but Linssen's header levelled five minutes after the break, Clement Bischoff put NEC in front on 74 minutes, and Linssen completed his brace two minutes later.
Diony silences Nijmegen before the break
Omonia arrived in Nijmegen with six points from three matches and the confidence of a side that had started the league phase well, and for 45 minutes they looked the more composed team. NEC lost Perr Schuurs to injury as early as the 15th minute, Willum Willumsson replacing him, and on 23 minutes the visitors struck: Panagiotis Andreou created the chance and Diony finished for 1-0, as Sportradar's match record confirmed.
NEC pushed without reward before half-time. Bischoff was booked on 32 minutes in a half that brought the home side plenty of territory but no equaliser, and Dick Schreuder's men went in a goal down knowing their European campaign — already featuring a heavy defeat and a famous win — was wobbling again. Omonia, beaten 4-1 by Benfica on Matchday 3, were halfway to the perfect response.
Linssen leads a three-goal blitz in 26 minutes
The response, when it came, was emphatic. Five minutes after the restart Tjaronn Chery supplied the delivery and Linssen headed NEC level for 1-1, a moment theScore's timeline also recorded. The Goffertstadion sensed the turnaround, and Schreuder's substitutions sharpened it: Philippe Sandler replaced Chery on 68 minutes, and Dušan Tadić and Kevin Kers followed a minute later.
On 74 minutes Bischoff — booked in the first half, undeterred since — scored the goal that put NEC in front. Two minutes later Linssen struck again for 3-1 and his second of the night, four shots and three on target underlining a centre-forward's performance. Thomas Kaminski made nine saves for Omonia, which tells its own story about the second-half siege: NEC finished with 23 shots to six, 12 on target, and 63 per cent possession. There were no red cards and no penalties, and Linssen was withdrawn to a standing ovation for Kaj Sierhuis on 86 minutes.
This NEC side has made a habit of European drama — their 4-2 win at Dinamo Zagreb, in which Linssen and Chery also scored, remains one of the results of the league phase — and this comeback belongs in the same company.
So what: NEC jump Omonia and eye the top eight
NEC move to seven points from four matches — two wins, a draw and a defeat — and leapfrog Omonia, who stay on six after back-to-back losses. In a 36-team table where the top eight skip the play-offs entirely, NEC are now placed to attack the second half of the league phase rather than merely survive it, and a home crowd that has seen four goals in Zagreb and three here will believe anything is possible.
For Omonia and Henning Berg, a strong start — two wins from two — has become two straight defeats, and the defensive problems exposed by Benfica have reappeared. Diony's goal showed they can hurt good sides; the 26 minutes after half-time showed how quickly they can fold. They need a result on Matchday 5 to stop the slide.
Beyond the Final Whistle: comebacks win you nothing in November, but they tell you everything about a team. NEC lost a defender early, trailed at half-time to organised opponents, and still won going away because their senior men — Chery creating, Linssen finishing, Tadić arriving to stretch a beaten defence — refused to let the night drift. Linssen also scored when NEC won in Zagreb, and Nijmegen is dreaming. Are NEC genuine top-eight contenders, or will the play-offs be their ceiling? Let us know in the comments.
