In the 12th round of the first league, Slavia won in Jablonec 2:1. Vršovičtí continue to remain the only undefeated team in the competition and lead the table by six points ahead of Prague rivals and defending champions Sparta. At Střelnica, Simion Michez opened the scoring in the 18th minute with the first goal for the red and white, and after an hour of play, Ondřej Lingr added the insurance. Immediately, Vakhtang Chanturišvili reduced, but the home team did not have time to equalize.
Slavia did not lose for the fourteenth time in a row in the league with Jablonec, of which they won the twelfth time. The team from Eden scored full points in the last 10 rounds. The North Bohemians, on the other hand, did not follow up on the last overwhelming victory of 5:0 in Liberec and suffered a defeat in the league after two wins. They are sixth in the table.
“We had a lot of respect for the match, everything was confirmed. Jablonec showed that its results are not random. It was like a European match with great intensity. It’s three points taken, but deserved by the quality,” Pražany coach Jindřich Trpišovský said at the press conference.
Due to card penalties, Slavia lost Oscar and Douděra, and instead they got a chance for Prebsl and Michez, who played for Prague in the league for the first time in the starting line-up. This move soon paid off for coach Trpišovský. In the 18th minute, the Cameroon winger sent a pass from the left side of Diouf under the crossbar after the cooperation of both halfbacks from close range and got the first goal for the red and white.
“The pass was perfect. I timed the run-up well and then it was easy to get the ball into the net. I’m very happy for the team and myself,” Michez told O2 TV. “The first goal was unnecessary. Diouf had a good first touch there, but we could have done some things better,” said Jablonec coach Luboš Kozel.
After half an hour of play, Provod created a great chance for Lingro, but goalkeeper Hanuš, who used to work in Slavia, made a good run and hit. On the opposite side, Nebyl stretched and goalkeeper Kinský eliminated his attempt only twice. After 38 minutes, the Slavist captain Bořil did not beat Hanuš with a technical blow and did not celebrate the jubilee 300th start in the Czech league with a goal.
After an hour of play, the favorite has already increased. Provod stretched down the right and his low cross was used by Lingr with a well-taken shot to the back post. The Czech international scored his first goal since returning to Slavia in the summer and his first competitive goal since June.
“I would say that he was waiting for the goal. His performances in the last matches were great and since he is used to scoring goals regularly, it was an important intervention for him after his return. It will definitely help him,” said Trpišovský.
The North Bohemians reduced the score in five minutes. Chanturišvili guided the ball from the side and with a good shot from outside the box he aimed exactly at the back post. The Georgian midfielder scored for the first time since the opening round, and Slavia only conceded in the fifth away match of the top flight this season.
“The celebrants were careful about my right leg, they went to the right. I cut it to the left, it worked out nicely. I had no other solution,” Chanturishvili said. “In the second half, Jablonec got into it better, but after a nice action we scored a goal to make it 2:0. But then a reduction came, for Chanturišvili it was perhaps the first goal with a left foot. We had to work a lot after that and it cost us a lot of energy,” he said Trpišovsky.
In the 72nd minute, Chorý knocked the ball into the net on the other side, but he was clearly offside. The home team then in vain demanded a penalty for the alleged hand. In the 83rd minute, Jablonečtí progressed to overnumbering, but Polidar ended it with an inaccurate shot.
The North Bohemians surprisingly put the favorite under pressure at times and were close to equalizing in the 87th minute, but Kinský pulled Cedidl’s dotted header over the crossbar. In the end, the people of Prague kept their lead and in Jablonec they scored for the tenth time in a row in the league. The North Bohemians lost at home in the top competition for only the second time out of the last 10 matches.
“We got the second goal in the second half and it seemed decided. But I appreciate that we got back into the game and came alive with Chanturishvili’s goal. We went for the equalizer, the chances were there. It was a very good game, in summary Slavia was probably better with that goal,” said Kozel, who previously played for the Prague club and led the B-team.
FK Jablonec – Slavia Prague 1:2 (0:1)
Goals: 66. Chanturishvili – 18. Michez, 61. Lingr. Referee: Rouček – Nádvorník, Machač – Všetečka (video). No cards. Viewers: 5237.
Jablonec: Hanuš – Martinec, Tekijaški, Cedidla – Čanturišvili, Nebyla (74. Fortelný), Beran, Polidar (88. Souček) – Kanakimana (65. Alégué), Hollý (65. Chramosta) – Puskáč (74. Schánělec). Trainer: Kozel.
Slavia: Kinský – Holeš, Zima, Bořil – Michez (83. Wallem), Zafeiris (82. Ševčík), Prebsl (90. Chaloupek), Diouf (82. Zmrzlý) – Lingr (63. Chytil), Provod – Chorý. Coach: Trpišovský.
