Heroic Performance and a victory, but Lille advances to the Champions League

Before kick-off, a minute of silence was observed in honor of legendary Swedish coach Sven-Göran Eriksson, who passed away on Monday at the age of 76. The Tribuna Sever displayed a banner reading "Our faith never dies."

Slavia created the first chance just a minute into the game, with Lukáš Provod firing over the bar after a defensive error by Lille. The next opportunity resulted in a goal: in the 5th minute, Christos Zafeiris struck a powerful left-footed shot from outside the box, hitting the inside of the post to give Slavia a 1-0 lead, confirmed by VAR. Jan Bořil provided the assist, and the sold-out stadium erupted with joy.

Antonín Kinský safely gathered a slightly deflected shot from Alexsandro and later denied a long-range effort from Haraldsson. On the other end, after a fantastic run by Provod, Tomáš Chorý missed an open goal—a golden opportunity wasted.

Chorý came close again after a whipped cross from Douděra, just missing the ball by inches at the far post. In the 38th minute, Slavia was awarded a free-kick after Zafeiris was fouled, and the Norwegian midfielder struck the crossbar with a powerful shot. Slavia went into halftime with a one-goal advantage.

In the 48th minute, David dribbled past several defenders but Kinský expertly narrowed the angle and saved the shot. Douděra missed acrobatically, and a challenge on Chorý was not deemed a penalty by the referee. Chevalier tipped Douděra's curling shot over the bar with his fingertips.

An hour into the game, a cross from Zhegrova hit the crossbar, and Santos' follow-up effort narrowly missed the far post. In the 73rd minute, Slavia made three substitutions, bringing on Schranz, Chytil, and Jurásek. Just four minutes later, Zhegrova equalized from distance—1:1. Diouf quickly attempted to respond, but Chevalier saved his header.

In the 84th minute, Slavia regained the lead with a goal of hope from Ivan Schranz, who pounced on a rebound after Chytil's shot was saved. Diouf provided a beautiful cross for the assist—2:1. Zafeiris nearly added another with a stunning right-footed shot that hit the crossbar; Chevalier was beaten, but the ball stayed out.

The referee added five minutes of stoppage time, during which Lille's goalkeeper saved a cross from Chytil only for Ogbu to shoot over the bar. Jurásek's header missed the far post by inches before the referee blew the final whistle.

Slavia will play in the Europa League this autumn, with the draw scheduled for Friday, August 30. Despite a heroic performance and a 2-1 victory, it wasn't enough to secure a spot in the Champions League.