Galatasaray drew 2-2 with Zalgiris in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League qualifier.
The Turkish giants created many chances in the first half but failed to score, and fell behind in the second half after a mistake from Victor Nelsson.
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However, Galatasaray rallied and equalized through Abdülkerim Bardakcı and Brentford signing Halil Dervişoğlu put the Lions ahead.
Galatasaray looked like they would leave with the victory but Donatas Kazlauskas equalized for Zalgiris in stoppage time with a last-gasp goal.
The match was played on a synthetic field, which Galatasaray struggled to adapt to, and they also made some individual errors in defense.
Head coach Okan Buruk was concerned about their defensive performance, but he acknowledged that it was a valuable learning experience and pledged to come back stronger in the second leg.
Zalgiris manager Vladimir Cheburin was pleased with his team’s performance and said that they would analyze the match to improve their approach in the second leg.
The tie is evenly poised, and both teams will be looking to win in Istanbul next week to progress to the next round.
