FK Liepaja produced a remarkable display of resilience to beat Dečić 1-0 at Daugavas stadions in the first leg of their Europa Conference League first qualifying round tie, despite playing over an hour with 10 men.
The hosts' task was made drastically harder in the 21st minute when M. Martins was shown a straight red card, forcing an immediate reshuffle as K. Leidsman replaced V. Sorokins just four minutes later. Liepaja also picked up a yellow card of their own before the break, with D. Oss booked deep into first-half stoppage time.
Dečić struggled to make their numerical advantage count, and it was Liepaja who struck the decisive blow against the run of play. In the 64th minute, E. Oloko fired home the only goal of the match, finishing off a chance created by A. Haidara to send the home crowd into raptures.
Montenegrin visitors Dečić tried to respond, sending on P. Pavlicevic in the 65th minute in search of an equalizer, but Liepaja's defense held firm. The hosts managed their advantage shrewdly, making a flurry of substitutions from the 70th minute onward to protect their lead and manage fatigue among the ten men.
Dečić continued rotating their attack late on, introducing B. Radusinovic, U. Djuranovic, D. Kontic and M. Gjolaj, but could not break down a determined Liepaja rearguard, leaving the Latvian side with a slender but crucial 1-0 advantage heading into the second leg.