In the 24th round of the first league, the players of Slavia only drew 2:2 in Liberec and lead the table by only one score before Sparta.
Former Prague player Lukáš Červ put North Bohemia in the lead in the 25th minute, but Peter Olayinka responded five minutes later and in the 65th minute substitute Mick van Buren, who was still working at Slovan in the fall, turned the tables. However, Olayinka allowed himself to be sent off in the 88th minute and Victor Olatunji equalized in the fifth minute of regulation.
Slavia lost points away from home for the third time in a row and did not follow up on the previous 2:1 home victory over defending champion Pilsen. Prague coach Jindřich Trpišovský was unable to return to the north of Bohemia, from where he headed to Eden. Although Liberec have not won in six rounds, they have robbed Slavia of points at home for the second time in a row. They are tenth in the incomplete table.
Liberec started significantly weakened. The four injured players were joined by Prebsl and Valenta, who are visiting Slovan from Slavia and could not play due to an agreement between the clubs. Coach Kozel, who previously worked in the Vršovice team, returned to the North Bohemian team after being punished for four yellow cards. The recovered Masopust got a chance in the starting line-up for Prague for the first time in the spring.
In the 11th minute, the visiting back headed only to Vliegen after a scrum, but otherwise the home team kept pace with the favorites in the beginning and unexpectedly opened the scoring. After a corner kick, Doumbia stretched out in the box, hit the bar with a ground shot, and at the end of the 25th minute, Cervova’s shot unfortunately went into Ogbu’s own net. The Liberec midfielder confirmed his position as the team’s current best scorer with the fourth goal, but he did not celebrate the goal against his former club.
The guests responded within five minutes. Vliegen knocked Doudér’s shot in front of him and Olayinka tapped the ball into the net. The home side unsuccessfully complained about the alleged previous foul on Doumbia. The Nigerian winger even in the last round against Pilsen tied the score at 1:1 and scored for the tenth time in the league year.
Five minutes after the break, Olayinka scored a second goal with the help of the stick, but according to the assistant referee, the ball had already left the field after a previous cross from the right side by Ševčík. The Slavists did not turn the situation around until the 65th minute.
Referee Zelinka awarded a penalty after Ndefe shoved Olayinka on the touchline and substitute Van Buren was right. The Dutch gunner made his mark against the club where he was a guest in the fall and scored his 12th goal in the league season. The home team protested vehemently against the referee’s verdict, Slovan Čech’s goalkeeper coach received a red card.
In the 71st minute, he rejected Olayinka’s safety and after that Van Buren didn’t make an impact either. In the 88th minute, Olayinka theatrically fell in the box after contact with Ndef, then punched the opponent in the face, and Zelinka immediately sent him off.
The North Bohemians then took advantage of a short power play. In the fifth of eight minutes, Olatunji ran onto Doumbi’s kick for defense and drilled the ball over Kolář into the net. There was no question of offside due to Oscar’s position. Although Slavia scored twelfth of the last 13 mutual league duels, a draw is a loss for them in the fight for the title.
24th round of the First Football League:
Slovan Liberec – Slavia Prague 2:2 (1:1)
Goals: 25. Cerv, 90.+5 Olatunji – 30. Olayinka, 65. Van Buren from pen. Referee: Zelinka – Paták, Antoníček – Petřík (video). ŽK: Doumbia, Preisler, Ndefe – Ogbu, Oscar, Zafeiris, Vlček (team leader). ČK: 64. Czech (goalkeeper coach) – 88. Olayinka. Viewers: 4758.
Assemblies:
Liberec: Vliegen – Ndefe, Plechatý, Purzitidis – Mészáros (77. Rabušic), Červ (80. Varfolomejev), Doumbia, Preisler (70. Ghali) – Tupta – Rondič (77. Kozák), Olatunji. Trainer: Kozel.
Slavia: Kolář – Masopust (55. Zafeiris), Ogbu, Holeš, D. Jurásek – Ševčík, Oscar – Douděra, Lingr (76. M. Jurásek), Olayinka – Tecl (56. Van Buren, 90. Hromada). Coach: Trpišovský.
