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Zenit barely holds off Dundalk despite financial gulf between clubs

Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters

Irish minnow Dundalk continues to shock the European elite in its maiden continental venture, with Russian behemoth Zenit St. Petersburg requiring a late surge on Thursday to steal a 2-1 win.

The team hailing from a Leinster town of 38,000 is completing feats unprecedented by clubs from its homeland, with Robbie Benson's bouncing 25-yarder on 52 minutes seeming to frighten Zenit into action.

The fightback from the visitor came from strikes via Robert Mak and Giuliano, with Mauricio bodging a late penalty, but results elsewhere mean Dundalk is still well in the frame for progression into the Europa League's Round of 32.

Manager Stephen Kenny, aged just 44 and with a burgeoning reputation through these exploits, has overseen one win, one draw, and one loss in Group D - the first time an Irish side has amassed points in Europe.

Other results have captured the imagination of Irish football fans in the past - Athlone Town's heroic 0-0 draw against AC Milan in 1975, Cork City's draw with Bayern Munich in 1991 - but the longevity of Dundalk's run perhaps tops the lot.

Dundalk has just three full-time employees in all its staff, with the outfit that often attracts attendances of 3,000 being kept afloat by owners that earn coin by selling screws and bolts.

Reports before the teams lined up suggested that Dundalk's annual budget was €1.5 million, while Zenit's stands at €165 million.

(Courtesy: @Coral)

"I have heard Dundalk's budget is small but when players go out there it is not about money - anything can happen in football," Zenit midfielder Alex Witsel told The Times' Hector Nunns before the match.

In a historic hub lying equidistant between Dublin and Belfast, anything - the most inconceivable of things - might just be happening.

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