Pyunik leave Finns stranded

Tampere United 0-4 FC Pyunik
FC Pyunik secured an astonishing away win against Tampere United in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League first qualifying round tie.

Commanding position
Two goals from Arman Karamyan and further strikes from Artavazd Karamyan and Artur Mkrchyan in the Tammela stadium put the Armenian champions in a commanding position with the second leg at home next week. The winners of the tie will meet the might of Ukrainian side FC Dynamo Kyiv in the second qualifying round.

Finnish control
Tampere were in charge of the opening stages and forced the visitors on the back foot whenever Tero Koskela was at the heart of the action.

Talented playmaker
The talented playmaker was the architect when, twice within the opening 20 minutes, Jari Niemi found himself face to face with Andronik Karaguezan only to steer his shot straight into the hands of the experienced Pyunik keeper.

Finns caught cold
As so often happens in football when one side fail to make the most of their opportunities, the other team struck back to devastating effect. With 32 minutes gone, Tampere were caught napping as they left time and space for Arman Karamyan to steal possession, burst into the box and tap the ball coolly under Mikko Kaven.

Karamyan double tally
If the Finnish hosts had any hopes of getting back into the match they were dashed only three minutes after the interval when a defensive error allowed Artavazd Karamyan to steer home a shot from a tight angle.

Dismal night
With the Finnish side's defence failing to get to grips with the away attackers, worse was to come when a lack of defensive organisation left Arman Karamyan free to slip the ball past a helpless Kaven for his second goal. To complete a dismal Finnish night, a string of neat passes provided the opening for Mkrchyan to make it 4-0 eight minutes from time and leave the Finnish champions a hard task in the second leg.