Ghanaian winger Joseph Paintsil played a dual role of hero and villain as KRC Genk faced elimination in the UEFA Europa League qualifiers on Thursday evening.
The Black Stars forward found the back of the net and experienced a sending off when Genk battled Olympiacos to a 1-1 draw at the Cegeka Arena.
Olympiacos secured a late-game triumph to advance to the next round with a 2-1 aggregate victory over the two legs.
Paintsil confidently converted a penalty, granting the Belgian club the lead halfway through the match.
However, the Ghanaian’s fortunes took a turn when he received a direct red card in the 65th minute, reducing Genk to ten players and offering the visitors an advantage for the remainder of the game.
In deep stoppage-time, midfielder Sotiris Alexandropolous netted the equalizer for Olympiacos, propelling them to the final round of qualifiers.
After transitioning from the Champions League to the Europa League a few weeks ago, Genk now descends to the Europa Conference League, where they are set to face Turkish side Adana Demirspor in the concluding stage of the qualifications.