POZNAN, July 31 -- At Cepheus Park Randers eight days earlier, Aarhus had conceded four goals in front of their own supporters and left the field with a Champions League dream that looked, by every reasonable measure, finished. What happened at the Enea Stadion in Poznan on Tuesday was the answer to everyone who had already written them off.

Trailing 4-1 on aggregate, the Danish champions won 4-1 in Poland, dragged their second qualifying round tie against Lech Poznan to 5-5 across two legs, and then held their nerve through a penalty shootout to advance 4-3, with Tobias Bech driving in the decisive kick to complete one of the more extraordinary results produced by this summer's European qualifying rounds.

The victory carries Aarhus int...