PAOK leave it late against Dinamo Minsk

• Group K results mean PAOK can qualify with a win when they host Guingamp on matchday six
• Stefanos Athanasiadis moves to five competition goals with two late strikes
• PAOK get their first victory in four European away games
• First time either side has played a match against a club from opponents' country
• Next games: PAOK v Guingamp, Fiorentina v Dinamo Minsk (11 December)

Two late goals from Stefanos Athanasiadis boosted PAOK FC's chances of qualifying from Group K for the UEFA Europa League round of 32 with victory at FC Dinamo Minsk.

The home side's hopes of reaching the knockout stages had already been extinguished on matchday four but, in the other game in the group, ACF Fiorentina did PAOK a favour with their 2-1 success at EA Guingamp, to add to PAOK's relief after Athanasiadis's two close-range finishes.

The visitors dominated the opening half and came close to scoring in the third minute when Dinamo defender Sergei Kontsevoi's under-hit back pass meant his goalkeeper Sergei Ignatovich had to save from Athanasiadis, before Facundo Pereyra's follow-up shot was blocked. The only other real opportunities of the half both fell to PAOK's Portuguese defender Miguel Vítor, who nodded over Răzvan Raţ's corner on seven minutes before glancing wide a header from Raţ's free-kick right at the end of the half.

Dinamo's Slobodan Simović was the first to seriously test PAOK goalkeeper Panagiotis Glykos after the break with a hooked effort towards goal and another good chance arrived for the unmarked Franck Dja Djedje from the resulting corner. However, PAOK began to control proceedings again and Pereyra and Fanis Tzandaris both threatened before Athanasiadis first tapped in from Pereyra's cross and then finished another after Ergys Kaçe's initial attempt hit the back of Simović – allowing him to notch his fifth Group K goal, following his hat-trick against the same opposition in a 6-1 matchday one thrashing.