MŠK Tesla Stropkov - 1. FK Svidník 3-1 (1-0)
García Araque 13', Varga 60', Olejár 74' - Guilherme Lima 70'.
Friday, 4 August 2023, 5 pm local time (3 pm UTC), MŠK Tesla Stadium, Stropkov, Slovakia, the 1st round of the Slovak Third League, East Group (III. Liga - Východ).
The two teams, Stropkov in blue and Svidník in red, and the referees are ready for the start of the game. Photo source: Ladislav Lukáč (Facebook)
The 2023-2024 season of the Slovak Third League have kicked off this week-end with a match scheduled (rather unusually) on Friday afternoon, nothing more and nothing less than the local derby between MŠK Tesla Stropkov and 1. FK Svidník. Two teams that finished in mid-table last season, but looked pretty different in this match, as Tesla Stropkov won the game easily. 1. FK Svidník underwent serious changes in the few weeks that passed from the end of the last season, and they only had two players from the last season in the starting eleven (and two more on the bench). Even more importantly, they have a new manager, Tomáš Suslo, and time is always needed to built up a team almost from the scratch.
Svidník goalkeeper, Ondrej Vasilco, was one of the best in his team, despite the three goals received. Photo source: Ladislav Lukáč (Facebook)
Right from the beginning, the home side launched a total offensive, and missed big opportunites in the 2nd and 8th minutes. However, early enough, Svidník defenders were not able to stop the advance of the opponents, and a clever pass found Jhonatan García Araque in excellent position at the edge of the box, his precise shot leaving no hope for the goalkeeper: 1-0 (13').
Jhonatan García Araque's shot broke the deadlock. Photo source: Ladislav Lukáč (Facebook)
For a brief period of time, Tesla Stropkov reduced the intensity of the attacks, but then they started "firing" again, missing an impressive number of goal chances in five minutes: a goal by Frederik Varga cancelled for offside (26'), a shot in the side post (28'), and a header by Frederik Varga, cleared from the goal line by one of Svidník defenders (31').
MŠK Tesla Stropkov (in blue) clearly dominated the game. Photo source: Ladislav Lukáč (Facebook)
It was only towards the end of the first half when the visitors were able to balance the game a little bit, and they had their first chance, a dangerous cross from the right by Guilherme Lima, eventually cleared by the Stropkov defense, but two Svidník players were close to have a go from short range (41').
In the second half, the game looked more balanced, with the visitors having their first shot on target (51'). But the host side maintained the overall control of the match, and eventually their efforts to double the advantage paid off: a cross from the left side found big guy Frederik Varga unmarked in the box, and he headed the ball into the net: 2-0 (60').
Frederik Varga, all alone in the box, had all the time he needed to place his header properly for 2-0. Photo source: Ladislav Lukáč (Facebook)
After the second goal, the Stropkov side relaxed a little bit, and the visitors took advantage. Samuel Šul'ák and Marko Palaj had a nice action on the right side, one of the Stropkov defenders slipped in a crucial moment, leaving the door open for a cross into the centre of the box, where Guilherme Lima succeeded (after he was first denied by the goalkeeper) to score in his second attempt, one on one with Dušan Dlugoš: 2-1 (70').
Former Svidník player Alex Olejár (in blue) put the last nail in his former team's coffin, scoring for 3-1. Photo source: Ladislav Lukáč (Facebook)
It was only a matter of minutes before Tesla Stropkov stroke back, on a very fast counterattack on the right side, which ended with a decisive pass in the center of the box, where Alex Olejár, unmarked, had the freedom to place his shot to the left of the goalkeeper: 3-1 (74').
After this goal, things relaxed, the host players were content with the result, while the visitors were aware of their inability to change anything in what was left of the game.
Stropkov: Dlugoš - Špak, Keresteš, Matkobiš, Nguyen Hien, Ivanecký (Štefáník 75'), García Araque (Zapotocký 85'), Varga (Dovičák 85'), Vasil' (Hurný 53'), Polaščík, Olejár (Leško 75'). Manager: Ján Šafranko.
Svidník: Vasilco - Pablo Dos Santos, Avetisian, Lukčo, Ducár - Pončák (Jobko 76') - Guilherme Lima (Luščík 86'), Šul'ák, Ebede, Makara - Reiter (Palaj 46'). Manager: Tomáš Suslo.
Referee: Filip Glova.
Yellow card: Vasil' 43'.
For 1. FK Svidník, difficult times seem to lay ahead. They were also eliminated from the Slovak Cup, losing 1-0 to OTJ Jamník (a lower league team) in the first round. The defeat away at Stropkov is not necessarily the worst thing that could happen, but it is the manner in which this defeat happened that should raise the alert in the Svidník side. There are lots of worrying signs out there. The best players of the last season left, and the newcomers showed almost nothing yet. Among them, the foreigners were very disappointing. They were supposed to be among the best players in the squad, but they looked to be the weakest.
The other matches of the first round of the 2023-2024 Slovak Third League will be played today (Saturday) and tomorrow (Sunday). This year, the East Group will only have 15 teams because Slovan Giraltovce withdrew and the Slovak Football Federation was unable to find a proper replacement.
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