Bulgaria’s Ludogorets Books Place in Champions League 3rd Qualifying Round

Bulgarian champions Ludogorets Razgrad defeated Slovakia’s Slovan Bratislava 3:0 at home, setting up for a UEFA Champions League third qualifying round meeting with FK Partizan.

Trailing 2-1 from the first leg and, Ludogorets had a difficult task on Wednesday. But Ivan Stoyanov's early goal wiped out the deficit, and Dani Abalo hit two more as the confident hosts swept aside their experienced opponents 4-2 on aggregate.

"When you win 3-0, you cannot feel anything but satisfaction for a job well done," newly appointed Ludogorets head coach Stoycho Stoev commented.

"There was a lot pressure on the team because of the two defeats last week and the arrival of a new coach. But the players gave their best and I think we deserved to win,” he added, as cited by UEFA.com.

Stoev took over at the helm of the Razgrad-based club following a shocking defeat against newly promoted Lyubimets in the first round of Bulgaria’s top division.