Czech football league kicks off: False start for Slavia, Pilsen shows dominance
The first matchweek of the Chance Liga, the first tier of Czech football, is in the books. Title-holders Slavia Prague were held at a 2-2 draw, at home against FC Hradec Králové. Viktoria Pilsen clinch an early top spot after sweeping FK Pardubice 1-5. Here’s how all the games played out, and what the 16 teams’ prospects are heading into the new season:
Slavia Prague 2-2 FC Hradec Králové
In their home opener at Eden Arena in Prague, last year’s champions Slavia only came away with a point. In a disappointing 2-2 draw with FC Hradec Králové, forward Vasil Kušej caught the eye assisting both goals. Highly favoured to repeat last year’s title-winning feat, Slavia will have to do without El Hadji Malick Diouf, who sealed his move to West Ham United for a league record fee. Trpišovský’s men added the likes of Michal Sadílek and Daiki Hashioka to their ranks, though no new additions featured at kick-off on Sunday. On August 4th, Slavia’s 8 opponents in this year’s Champions League group stage will be revealed.
Slavia’s opponents last night were Hradec Králové. The East-Bohemian club finished 9th place in the last two consecutive seasons, but will be aiming for better in the upcoming campaign. Despite having been statistically dominated, a 2-2 draw against the reigning champions certainly is a statement of intent. Former Czech national team captain Vladimír Darida joined the team this summer, as did ex-Slavia striker Mick van Buren, adding some much needed experience to the squad.
FK Pardubice 1-5 Viktoria Pilsen
The very first game of the Czech league season on Friday evening, saw a one-sided affair in favour of Viktoria Pilsen. Former Premier League striker Matěj Vydra contributed two goals in a commanding 1-5 victory. Midfielder Pavel Šulc, who was linked with a move to one of Europe’s top leagues this summer, also proved his worth with a goal and two assists. Last year’s runners-up are back in action tomorrow as they face Servette Geneva in the second round of Champions League play-offs. A victory over the two legs will be sufficient for a place in the Europa League. Another two opponents would await on the road to a potential place in the Champions League.
FK Pardubice narrowly avoided relegation last season, finishing second-last, albeit with a comfortable 14-point margin ahead of Dynamo České Budějovice. Besides several loan deals and free signings, Pardubice made little moves in the off-season as it shapes up to be another difficult campaign for the team of former Norwich City striker, now manager David Střihavka.
FK Jablonec 1-1 Sparta Prague
Czech record champions Sparta Prague are coming off the back of a disappointing season, finishing in 4th place. A 1-1 draw against FK Jablonec is not quite the bounce back they would have wished for. Ahead of the season, Sparta reunited with Danish manager Brian Priske, who guided the team to the league title two years ago. Right-back Pavel Kadeřábek also returned to the club after ten years at Bundesliga side Hoffenheim, and assisted Sparta’s only goal of the night. The most notable outgoing transfer of the summer was Martin Vitík’s €11 million departure to Bologna. On Thursday, Sparta will look to dispatch Kazakh side FK Aktobe on their path to the Conference League.
Jablonec finished a single place below Sparta, narrowly missing out on European football. New addition, Gambian striker Lamin Jawo got the goal on Saturday to keep one point in North Bohemia. Dominik Hollý was the only notable departure, incidentally to Sparta Prague, but did not feature in the game against his old club.
Bohemians Prague 1-0 Baník Ostrava
Baník Ostrava finished in 3rd place last year, launching themselves into the second round of Europa League play-offs against Legia Warsaw. Away against Bohemians, they were held scoreless in a tightly-contested 1-0 defeat. The team of manager Pavel Hapal will nevertheless be aiming to replicate a high-place finish this year, but has to fear the departure of star midfielder Tomáš Rigo, who is heavily linked with a move abroad.
Bohemians Prague, the lifetime club of football legend Antonín Panenka, recorded an uninspiring 10th place finish last year. A clean sheet for goalkeeper Michal Reichl and goal for Bahraini striker Yusuf, however, give the “Kangaroos” an early glimmer of hope for a better season’s result.
1. FC Slovácko 0-1 Sigma Olomouc
Sigma Olomouc won last year’s Czech Cup, and added some needed depth in the off-season ahead of the ensuing European campaign. The Moravian club will stream into the 4th round of the Europa League play-offs, with a place in the Conference League guaranteed in case of defeat. In the meantime, a victory in their opening game is a welcome result in the absence of star striker Jan Kliment, who is still recovering from a broken fibula. The marksman got 18 goals in 21 appearances last season, and has been linked with a move to Slavia despite his current indisposition.
For Slovácko, last year’s 13th place was a major disappointment, after four consecutive years in the top-6. A remarkable addition this summer was 42-year-old former Czech international Milan Petržela, who started in the 0-1 defeat on the weekend. As the oldest team in the league by average age, Slovácko will rely heavily on experience in their attempt to climb the league table.
FK Mladá Boleslav 3-3 Slovan Liberec
In the most neck-and-neck game of the first matchweek, Mladá Boleslav and Slovan Liberec took a point a piece. The former stunned in the Conference League last year, beating Spanish giants Real Betis, but had to settle for a low 11th place finish in the domestic league. Boleslav bolstered their ranks with no less than five players from Slavia in hopes of returning to a European spot.
Slovan Liberec would have been the happier of the two teams yesterday night, having equalised in the 89th minute. The goal came through striker Lukáš Macek, assisted by Vojtěch Stránský. A stroke of destiny, as both players played for Mladá Boleslav last season, and only joined Liberec this summer on a free transfer. The 7th-place team of last league season is most likely looking at a similar position this year, with former West Ham centre-half Radoslav Kováč as their manager.
MFK Karviná 2-0 Dukla Prague
MFK Karviná recorded their best-ever league finish last year with 8th place, and started the new season on the same note. Goals by Ebrima Singhateh and Samuel Šigut were enough to seal the victory for the team from Silesia.
Dukla Prague have appointed former Sparta coach David Holoubek, and added players of international pedigree in Samson Tijani and Rihards Matrevics. So far, the busy off-season is yet to bring its fruits. The club of Ballon d’Or winner Josef Masopust has a long season ahead, trying not to repeat last year’s bottom-3 finish.
FK Teplice 1-3 FC Zlín
Newly promoted FC Zlín celebrated their return to the top flight with a commanding victory. Nigerian winger Stanley Kanu was the star man with a goal and two assists, despite only coming on for the second half. Despite their impressive showing, the South-Moravian team is being tipped as the main relegation candidate.
FK Teplice, who finished in 12th place last year, fell short against a much weaker opponent on paper. Highly-coveted goalkeeper Matouš Trmal joined the team on a permanent transfer this summer, but failed to make an instant impact, conceding three goals on the opening day.
The Czech league consists of 30 regular season games. The top-6 and bottom-6 teams then all play each other once, within their respective 6-team groups, to decide the final league finish. According to the UEFA coefficient, the Chance Liga is Europe’s 10th best league, meaning the first four teams qualify for European competitions, with one extra spot available via the Czech Cup.
