Europa League Matchday 2 Awards
The second matchday of the 2015-16 UEFA Europa League has come and gone as 48 teams in 12 groups took part in 24 matches on Thursday.
With so much action going on, it was difficult to keep up with everything. But we've tried to sort out the best of Matchday 2 for you here in one spot.
Without further delay, here are our choices for Europa League Matchday 2 awards.
Hat-Trick Hero: Franco Di Santo
1 of 5
Franco Di Santo hit a hat-trick for Schalke in the first half of the Bundesliga side's 4-0 victory over Asteras in Group K. According to UEFA.com, it was the fifth-fastest hat-trick in Europa League history.
The Argentine opened the scoring in the 28th minute with asuperb volleyed finish, scored again nine minutes later and finished off his hat-trick with a penalty one minute before halftime.
As Squawka noted on Twitter, Di Santo was the epitome of efficiency, scoring with all three of his shots.
Best Assist: Leroy Sane
2 of 5
Don't know the name Leroy Sane? You should.
Schalke had plenty of reasons to be happy after their 4-0 demolition of Asteras in Group K, as the previous slide suggested. But the 19-year-old Sane might just have provided the best moment of the night with this assist for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.
Take a bow, kid.
Most Generous Gift: Efe Ambrose
3 of 5
Celtic were cruising. Leading by two goals with halftime approaching, the Scottish side seemed set for victory at home to Fenerbahce.
Then disaster struck in the form of Efe Ambrose.
In the 43rd minute, the defender headed an ill-advised back-pass directly into the path of Fernandao. The Fenerbahce man had read Ambrose like a book and had no trouble beating Craig Gordon for the Turkish outfit's first goal.
How bad was the error? Let's send it over to Celtic manager Ronny Deila.
"I think we had good control over them but, of course, we made a stupid mistake which happens in football," Deila said, according to the Daily Mail's Brian Marjoribanks.
And then there's this, from BBC Sport: "If you see the overall performance, when you are defending you need to keep concentration for 90 minutes. That's the biggest challenge Efe has. He plays in 88 minutes very good but he has, sometimes, some easy mistakes and today was one of them."
Ouch. Better luck next time, Efe.
Biggest Goalkeeping Gaffe: Robin Olsen
4 of 5
PAOK nearly caused a big upset against Borussia Dortmund in Group C, but Gonzalo Castro netted a 72nd-minute equalizer to spare the visitors' blushes.
But it never should have gone in.
Castro's name will forever be on the scoresheet, but he was, in fact, crossing to Jonas Hofmann, who was making a run into PAOK's box. The ball bounced in front of both Hofmann and PAOK goalkeeper Robin Olsen, who appeared to have the situation covered.
Instead, Olsen let the ball roll, apparently tricked by Castro's pass, Hofmann's run or both. Decide for yourself by watching the whole sequence at UEFA.com.
Whatever the case, Olsen should never have conceded that goal.
Most Adventurous Formation: Fiorentina
5 of 5
Fiorentina moved to the top of the Serie A table with a 4-1 victory at Inter Milan. As tactics guru Michael Cox pointed out on Twitter, the Viola marked the occasion by playing what amounted to a 3-3-4 formation against Belenenses in Group I.
Paulo Sousa's men took full advantage of the attacking-minded setup, running riot in a 4-0 win over the Portuguese side. Federico Bernardeschi and Khouma Babacar scored in the first half, and Giuseppe Rossi applied the final touches with Fiorentina's fourth following a Belenenses own goal.
It won't always be so easy, but Fiorentina gave fans an entertaining spectacle on Thursday.
