Liberec
Commentary
The Liberec team were not afraid of their opponent and it was they who created the first shooting opportunity. Roman Potočný put the ball toward the goal from outside the area and Nita handled it without a problem. A few minutes later, Potočný led a 2-on-1 break, but Kuchtu never received the ball thanks to the attentive away goalkeeper who caught the cross pass.
From a Slovan corner kick, a beautiful pass from Tomáš Hybs found the head of Michal Fukala, whose attempt was aimed directly at the middle of the Sparta goal. The Praguers also threatened from a corner. Trávník played it unconventionally into the area and the bag of Sáček, which bounced off the ground, in front of Tetteh but was denied by Filip Nguyen.
The conclusion of the opening 45 minutes was dominated by Sparta. After hesitation in the middle of the field, Plavšić was stripped of the ball by Taras Kačaraba under the threat of a second yellow card. Tetteh was already stopped by a foul, and the pass from Hanck's direct kick was right at Nguyen.
In added time, however, the North Bohemians took the lead! Tomáš Malinský scored on a brilliant fast break from the right side and surprised Nita with a surprising sharp shot to make it 1-0. But that was not all. Emotions burned when Hancko pulled the escaping Kuchta to the ground and referee Julínek pulled out only a yellow card.
The second half kicked off in a very hectic spirit. Malinský and Alibekov were cautioned in a short time. After the fall of one of the visitors the referee even pointed to the penalty spot, but the video showed that Matěj Hybš fouled him just outside the box. Still, the scoreline was nearly equalised because the next shot from Hložek hit the goalpost square on!
Less than a minute later, Hanousek was felled inside Malinski's penalty area and Julínek headed for the video again, this time ordering a penalty kick! Tomáš Potočný stepped up and, with ice water running through his veins, calmly made it 2-0. However, the two-goal lead did not last long for Pavel Hoftych. Adam Hložek reached out from 20 meters and scored with a cannon to the far post, bringing cheers from the numerous Sparta fans behind the goal.
And it was almost tied! Filip Nguyen appeared in the role of Liberec savior, running brilliantly against Tetteh, reducing his shooting angle, and knocking the ball to safety. Again, the score on the other side changed. Petar Musa patted his right flank. He had only Tomáš Malinský in the area , but Sparta did not mark him and Malinský managed to convert the pass from the Croatian and make it 3-1!
During the eight added minutes, Hašek had a chance to get one back for Sparta, but after a good a good pass from Hanušek, his header only found the far post. By taking all three points, the blue and white moved to within a single point of Sparta in the table!
