ByJOSHUA HALICKMANAUGUST 26, 2026 14:42Hapoel Beersheba came up short against Sabah FK late Tuesday night in agonizing fashion as it fell 5-2 (6-4 on aggregate) and was knocked out of UEFA Champions League contention in a dramatic clash in Azerbaijan.The Southern Reds will drop down and play in the Europa League league stage as their Champions League dreams were dashed seconds before full-time.With Ran Kozuk’s team holding on to a slim 4-3 aggregate lead late in the game, Tellur Mutallimov scored just ahead of the final whistle to send the clash into overtime, where Orphe Mbina’s goal and Joy-Lance Mickels’s insurance marker sent Sabah to the promised land and saw Beersheba’s dream come to a crashing conclusion.Beersheba coach Kozuk spoke about the loss.“I have to thank God for putting us in the position that we have been. I know an Israeli coach who lost the Champions League final [Avram Grant], and I also know that Hapoel Beersheba will come back even stronger from this. We all wanted to play in the Champions League, but we also have to understand that Sabah was a very good team and now we will play in a very good competition, the Europa League, which is an honor in itself.”HAPOEL BEERSHEBA midfielder Niv Yehoshua (28) battles for possession during the Southern Reds’ hard-fought 1-0 victory over Red Star Belgrade in the first leg of UEFA Champions League third-round qualifying. (credit: (Lior Moskovitz/Hapoel Beersheba))'We will stay together going forward'Speaking about the game itself, Kozuk continued: “I don’t know what to say about [Djibril] Diop’s second yellow card; I’ll keep my mouth shut about that. But so many players really did a great job, and we will stay together going forward. We couldn’t create what we needed to in this game, but we changed formations in order to try and help us out. Ultimately, we didn’t deserve to advance, and Sabah did.”Hapoel Beersheba captain Miguel Vitor spoke about the loss.“I feel very bad; we had about 30 seconds to finish the game and qualify. I have no words for how I feel; these moments are very tough. These are moments that are hard to repeat, and there are a lot of things in my head that this would be the last chance to qualify. I feel bad for the entire organization. It’s tough for everybody. I don’t know what else to say.”Beersheba came into Tuesday’s match nursing a 2-1 advantage from the first leg, and looked to take a quick lead in order to close in on a Champions League league stage spot. It almost did so in the second minute of the match when Igor Zlatanovic was left all alone in front of the goal, but his marker was ruled to be just offside. However, by the 10th minute Zlatanovic put home a Niv Yehoshua’s rebound to grab a 1-0 lead.Sabah looked to draw even, but Beersheba ’keeper Ofir Marciano was up to the task with multiple saves. However, the Reds’ goalscorer Zlatanovic had to be substituted off due to an injury, and Muhammed Abu Romi entered the fray soon thereafter. As the hosts pushed for the equalizer in earnest, they finally found it via Christian Nwachukwu as the two sides headed into the break knotted up at 1-1 (3-2 on aggregate in favor of Beersheba).\Beersheba captain Vitor subbed out due to chest injuryBeersheba captain Vitor was subbed off at half time due to an injury to his chest, while Yehoshua tried to give Ran Kozuk’s squad breathing room as the second half began, with his screamer just clearing the bar.At the other end, Mickels hit the woodwork, and Mwachukwu’s chance missed the target while Marciano made a miraculous kick save on Mickels as well.But just as Sabah ’keeper Stas Pokalitov cleared the ball, he did so right to Guy Mizrachi, who calmly sent it right back and into the goal for a 2-1 Beersheba lead in the 61st minute. However, 10 minutes later, Saban caught the Southern Reds sleeping when Umarali Rakhmonaliev slotted the ball past Marciano to draw even at 2-2 in the match and pull to within 4-3 on aggregate.As Beersheba desperately tried to hold on as the minutes ticked off the clock, they conceded again with just seconds left in regulation as Mutallimov slammed home a corner kick to help Sabah grab a 3-2 lead and 4-4 on aggregate to send the game into overtime.Xander Severina had a point-blank chance that was just blocked by Marciano as the extra session began, while Mbina also had an incredible chance that was somehow saved.But after Djibril Diop was issued a second yellow card for what seemed to be a phantom foul, which reduced Beersheba to 10 men, Mbina made the Israeli side pay with a stunning strike to give Sabah a 4-2 lead and 5-4 on aggregate.Beersheba tried to get back into the game, but Mickels added an insurance marker while Peretz was sent off with a second yellow as Sabah kept it under control to close out the victory and drop the Israeli side to the Europa League.See more Israeli sports coverage at www.sportsrabbi.com/enFollow us on Google