Freiburg roared into the UEFA Europa League last 16 on Thursday, bouncing back from two goals down to shock Lens 3-2 after extra time (3-2 on aggregate) in the second leg of their knockout round playoff.

Lens, who dropped down from the Champions League after finishing third in the group stage, had been held to a goalless draw at home by Freiburg in their first leg.

In the second leg, Freiburg started highly motived in front of their home crowd but couldn't pose any danger to Lens' well-positioned defense.

Lens gained a foothold as the match progressed and opened the scoring out of the blue in the 28th minute when Freiburg goalkeeper Noah Atubolu misjudged a free kick, allowing David Costa to slot home from inside the box.

Freiburg nearly restored parity moments later but Lens custodian Brice Samba tipped a misplaced clearance onto the woodwork.

The hosts' wastefulness saw them punished before half time as Lens doubled their advantage through Elye Wahi, who benefitted from Jonathan Gradit's long pass before chipping the ball over the onrushing Atubolu.

After the interval, Lens focused on fast breaks and ceded control to Freiburg, who pressed forward and were rewarded on 67 minutes after Ritsu Doan's free kick found Roland Sallai, who drilled the ball into the roof of the net.

Lens almost put the result beyond doubt in the closing stages, but Angelo Fulgini couldn't finish off a counterattack, while Atubolu was equal to Ruben Aguilar's effort.

Freiburg restored parity in the dying seconds as Sallai tapped home a loose ball from inside the box after Lens failed to clear.

With away goals now no longer serving as a tiebreaker in the event of a draw over two legs, the match then proceeded into extra time, and in the 99th minute, Freiburg's Michael Gregoritsch made use of Lucas Holer's good build-up work and slotted the winner into an open goal.

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