Ricardinho earns ten-man Sheriff draw at Tromsø

Ricardinho struck late to earn ten-man FC Sheriff a 1-1 UEFA Europa League draw at Tromsø IL, a result that leaves both teams without a win from two Group K matches.

The hosts, struggling on the domestic front, were looking to put a turbulent week behind them following the dismissal of coach Agnar Christensen. Despite playing second fiddle to Sheriff for most of the match, Zdeněk Ondrášek's side-footed goal midway through the second half put them ahead, and the visitors' search for an equaliser was made more difficult when Melli was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Morten Moldskred. Nevertheless, Ricardinho's neat finish three minutes from time earned Sheriff a share of the spoils.

Sheriff settled quickly, with Ricardinho pulling the strings for the visitors. The Brazilian went close after 13 minutes, skewing a shot wide when well placed on the edge of the box. Adnan Сausevic flashed a header wide for the home side on 31 minutes, but it was Sheriff forward Cadu who missed arguably the best chance of the first period, flashing a shot across goal when played over the top.

Sheriff forward Ismail Isa's decision to attempt to lob goalkeeper Marcus Sahlman rather than pass to the unmarked Cadu just after the hour proved costly. Three minutes later, Tromsø took the lead on their first real foray into their opponents' half through Ondrášek, shortly before Sheriff were reduced to ten men when Melli saw red. Despite the numerical disadvantage, the Moldovan side continued to press for the equaliser, and Ricardinho produced a fine piece of skill to level late on.