A week ago, Malmö FF lost the Europa League premiere at home to Glasgow Rangers with a clear 0-2.
Then, many wondered if the dominant team in Allsvenskan - Malmö leads with ten points and five matches left to play - would be able to hold their own in Europe this fall.
Now, Karabach awaited on away ground in the second of eight group stage matches - the club from Azerbaijan that has reached eleven consecutive European group stages.
Quick reply
It didn't start well on the Tofiq Bähramov Stadium in Baku either. Already after a quarter, the Brazilian Juninho could easily sprint past MFF defender Pontus Jansson and place the leading goal behind the away goalkeeper Johan Dahlin.
The reply came almost immediately. Just four minutes after the goal, Malmö forward Erik Botheim - at the height of the penalty spot - volleyed in the equalizer after a fine pass from Gabriel Busanello.
Malmö was close to making it 2-1 in the end of the half, but Fabijan Buntić in the home goal made a brilliant leg save on Isaac Kiese Thelin's finish.
Early leading goal
The extension came instead directly after the break, and it was again the Norwegian Botheim who kept himself forward. Just 70 seconds into the second act, he placed the 2-1 goal at the far post.
Then, Malmö had already been forced to change goalkeeper. Dahlin did not come out for play in the second act, and instead, Ricardo Friedrich took his place between the posts.
The longer the half went on, the more Karabach took over the ball possession. The best equalizing chance came in the end, but Abdellah Zoubir's finish hit the post, and MFF could hold on to the win.
We're playing a fantastically tactical match. The last matches, I've built up my form again, and it's nice to score goals, but today I'd rather talk about the team effort, says Erik Botheim.
In the next round on October 24, Malmö will host Greek Olympiakos at home.
The men's three club tournaments in football are now decided in a group stage with a total of 36 teams in each tournament.
In the Champions League and Europa League, each participating team meets eight different teams. In the Conference League, the teams meet six different opponents.
After the group stage matches, the top eight teams advance directly to the round of 16. Teams 9-24 meet in a playoff over two legs (home and away) to reach the round of 16. For teams that place 25-36, it's the end of the tournament.
The knockout matches up to and including the semifinal are decided over two legs - the finals are decided over one match.
September 26: Rangers (home) 0-2
October 3: Qarabag (away) 2-1
October 24: Olympiakos (h)
November 6: Besiktas (a)
November 28: Ferencvaros (a)
December 12: Galatasaray (h)
January 23: Twente (h)
January 30: Slavia Prag (a)
