Qarabağ clinch third Azerbaijani championship

Qarabağ FK have sealed back-to-back titles in Azerbaijan following a 1-0 victory over Sumqayıt.

In the event, nearest rivals İnter Bakı PİK could only draw at Qäbälä FK so a draw would have been enough, but a goal from Dutch striker Leroy George was nevertheless enough for Qarabağ to extend their unbeaten run to 14 matches in all competitions.

"Congratulations to all who are connected to our club," said coach Gurban Gurbanov. "It was a very hard season, and we had lots of difficulty in the closing rounds. But we fought until the end and showed our character.

"Inter were chasing us and didn't let us recover breath for the whole season. Defending the title was harder than winning it for the first time. But our job has not yet done as we also want to win the cup final."

Indeed, having sealed the Baku club's third title, they could yet emulate their double of 1993. Gurbanov's side, who came so close to knocking out FC Internazionale Milano in the UEFA Europa League this season, face Neftçi PFK in the final on 3 June.

Subject to confirmation from UEFA, Qarabağ will enter the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round.