Extra-time goal sent us into the MOL Cup quarter-final
In the 26th minute, Hradec Králové's Kodeš created an opportunity with an individual play, but Aleš Mandous managed to handle the subsequent shot, helped by a deflection from Igoh Ogbua. Ten minutes later, Hais from Slavia received the ball in the opponents' box, but Oscar intervened just in time to block his shot.
Just before halftime, Slavia had a chance from a direct free-kick, with Mojmír Chytil heading towards goal, but Zadražil was prepared and caught the attempt.
The first half ended without further significant action, leading to a balanced break.
The second half commenced with Slavia initiating a combination play, culminating in a chance for Mojmír Chytil, whose shot amidst defenders couldn't find its way past the goal. Minutes later, Chytil attempted a powerful shot from the edge of the box, which grazed the post.
Around the hour mark, Chytil remained active, taking two touches before shooting, yet the score remained unchanged as his shot from outside the box flew wide.
In the 72nd minute, Slavia made their first substitution, replacing Václav Jurečka with Dutch forward Mick van Buren. Shortly after, Petr Ševčík set up Chytil for a solo run, but the goalkeeper of Hradec Králové made two excellent saves against the national team striker.
Slavia kept up the pressure, with van Buren attempting a long-range shot, but it soared over the bar. In the 85th minute, a corner taken by Petr Ševčík found Igoh Ogbua, but the defense of Hradec Králové was prepared.
With no resolution in regular time, the match proceeded to extra time. Two minutes into extra time, a dangerous cross from the left by Wallem found van Buren, who, however, only headed the ball into the ready gloves of Zadražil. After 100 minutes of play, Slavia made their second substitution, replacing Chytil and Vlček with Sheriff Sinyan and Stanislav Tecl.
Three minutes before the break, following a foul on van Buren, Zafeiris lined up for a free-kick, but despite surpassing the wall technically, the Hradec Králové goalkeeper read the direction. In the second half of extra time, Slavia made their fifth substitution, replacing David Douděra with Michal Tomič on the right side.
In the 109th minute, a foul on van Buren led to a long ball into the box, where Conrad Wallem leaped the highest and headed the ball into the unguarded net – 0:1!
Seven minutes before the end, the coaching team of Slavia made another substitution, with Muhamed Tijani replacing Christos Zafeiris. Five minutes later, Hradec Králové had a dangerous free-kick, but Ševčík's attempt went over the crossbar.
During added time, Hradec Králové had a set-piece situation, and their goalkeeper Zadražil went up. However, Muhamed Tijani gained control of the ball, sending Mick van Buren on a clear run toward an empty net – 0:2! In the final moments, Jakub Hromada replaced Petr Ševčík.
The game concluded without further action, granting Slavia a two-goal victory in Hradec. Next, Jindřich Trpišovský's team will face Mladá Boleslav in the Fortuna Arena on Sunday, December 10th, for the 18th round of the FORTUNA:LIGA, scheduled to kick off at 18:00.
Tickets are available on general sale HERE.
Lineups
Zadražil – Čihák, Klíma, Leibl (113. Čech) – Čmelík (78. Horák), Kučera, Kodeš (113. Ševčík), Krejčí – Šašinka (78. Pudhorocký) – Juliš (91. Dancák), Hais (60. Koubek)
Mandous – Vlček (101. Sinyan), Ogbu, Bořil – Douděra (106. Tomič), Ševčík (120. Hromada), Oscar, Wallem – Zafeiris (113. Tijani) – Jurečka (72. van Buren), Chytil (101. Tecl)