It was a mixed bag of results for Nigerian stars in the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Conference League semi-finals on Thursday night.
Four Nigerians were involved in the ties, with Nathan Tella and Victor Boniface with Bayer Leverkusen up against Italian side AS Roma, while Ademola Lookman and his Atalanta side squared up against Olympique Marseille at the Stade Velodrome.
Raphael Onyedika and Club Brugge made the trip to Florence to face Fiorentina as the European competitions got into the semi-final stages.
It was a night to forget for Raphael Onyedika, as he picked up two yellow cards and got sent off as his team capitulated to a 3-2 defeat.
The Nigerian midfielder started the game for the Belgians and held his own until some unfortunate incidents in the second half that saw him sent off.
Riccardo Sottil scored for the hosts as early as the 5th minute, but Brugge midfielder Hans Vanaken equalized from the spot in the 17th minute to draw his side level.
Veteran striker Andrea Belotti then put Fiorentina ahead once again eight minutes before the break as the Italians looked to solidify a first-leg advantage.
There was a three-minute sequence of unfortunate incidents involving Onyedika, as he picked up two cards in three minutes in the 58th and 61st minute with Club Brugge being reduced to ten men.
Despite being a man down, they managed to find another equalizer through Brazilian forward Igor Thiago.
Unfortunately, there was a heartbreaking moment for Onyedika and his teammates as Fiorentina scored in added time of the second half to secure a 3-2 first-leg home win.
Lookman on as a sub as Atalanta draw at Marseille
Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman started the game on the bench as Atalanta travelled to France to take on Marseille.
Atalanta are seeking to qualify for their second cup final of the season after defeating Fiorentina last week to qualify for the Coppa Italia final.
The Italians went ahead in the game through striker Gianluca Scamacca in the 11th minute from an assist by Teun Koopmeiners to set them on their way.
Despite the early momentum, Atalanta were pegged back nine minutes later when Geoffrey Kondogbia found Chancel Mbemba to equalize for the French side.
Lookman was introduced in the 59th minute for goalscorer Scamacca as Atalanta sought to get the away win.
The Nigerian did well after coming on, but both sides were unable to add any more goals as they go into the second leg all square.
No show for Boniface, Tella on as a sub.
Bayer Leverkusen brightened their hopes for another cup final with a 2-0 away win at AS Roma in an ill-tempered game.
Xabi Alonso started the game without any of his Nigerian stars as both made the matchday squad but started from the bench.
Florian Wirtz provided Leverkusen with a half-time advantage when he scored in the 28th minute from an assist by Alex Grimaldo.
The second goal did not come until late in the second half when Robert Andrich delivered a beautiful second goal to put Leverkusen one foot into the final.
Super Eagles winger Nathan Tella came on for Amine Adli in the 77th minute, while Victor Boniface did not play any part in the game.
Under Xabi Alonso's management, the team extended their unbeaten streak to 47 games across all competitions this season.
Leverkusen are poised to potentially equal Benfica’s record within Europe’s top 10 leagues of 48 consecutive unbeaten games, a feat established between 1963 and 1965, prior to their encounter with Roma in the upcoming second leg match.
Following this, Die Werkself will journey to Eintracht Frankfurt for a Bundesliga fixture on Sunday.