Cherchesov began his Champions League campaign in the Faroe Islands. didn’t work very well
Anatoly Romanov July 11, 2023, 23:55 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Ferencvaros failed to beat local Klaksvik in the first match of the Champions League qualification.
Stanislav Cherchesov started his Champions League campaign with his Ferencváros. In the first match of the first qualifying round, the Hungarian gold holders were thrown far away – to the Faroe Islands! The team of the Russian coach played with the local champion Klaksvik.
For Ferencváros it was the first game of the new season. Cherchesov’s team played the last official match back in May 2023. Frodi prepared for the start of the Champions League qualification through combat, and the Hungarian Championship will start only in August. The opponent, on the contrary, is in full swing. “Klasvik” in the Faroe Islands has already gotten out of the habit of real resistance. In the current championship he had 16 wins in 16 rounds! As part of the hosts, legionnaires from Sweden, Norway, Serbia, Denmark and the Ivory Coast entered the field. Not those “dwarves” caught “Ferencváros”, as one might think.
It took the guests several minutes to get into the rhythm of the official match and adapt to the artificial pitch in Klaksvik. After that, Cherchesov’s team arranged several dangerous attacks: in eight minutes they fired four shots on goal, hit the target three times. Ferencváros used field serves and from set pieces, the Hungarian champions’ players won the fight ahead of the curve in the alien penalty area. In the middle of the first half, “Frodi” even scored after a combination with a pass to the third and a header from Traore. However, Zakariassen was caught offside before his cross, so the goal was rightly disallowed.
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In the tiny Injector Arena, with views so exotic that only the Ferencváros Islands can have, he led the way to a quick goal. But either the Hungarians relaxed a bit, or the hosts managed to outdo themselves and jump over their heads, and Klaksvik got through the rest of the first half better. At the break, the team of the Norwegian Magne Hoseth caught up with the guests in shots (5:5, on target – 1:3) and could well have scored. Ferencváros lost set pieces at their own goal, especially at the far post. The best moment, which ended with a hit on the crossbar, was created by Klaksvik thanks to a well-kicked out.
During the break, Cherchesov apparently spoke harshly to his players and perhaps banged his fist on the table. In any case, at the beginning of the second half, as in the debut of the first, Ferencvaros had the advantage. The guests increased the percentage of possession to 70%, the ball was drawn into the Klaksvik goal. “Frodi” did not show any charming football, but in the first official match of the season on an unnatural grass somewhere in the middle of nowhere, a fast and beautiful game was not expected. The task was simple: mark at least one and not concede.
Cherchesov tried to increase the pressure through substitutions – he made three at once in the middle of the second half. Newcomer Centrehav Barat (who came from Debrecen for €1.2m) went over into the Klaksvik penalty area and did not hit the ball, but the opponent. He received a yellow card. In general, three players signed in the summer window appeared at the Ferencváros base: in addition to Barat, there was the center-back Cissé (Kan, a free agent) and the striker Varga (Paks, €800,000). It cannot be said that “Frodi” somehow powerfully strengthened before the Champions League. At the same time, the most expensive rookie Abu Fani (Maccabi Tel Aviv, 1.5 million euros) was sitting on the bench.
Ferencváros was able to snatch victory in the Faroe Islands thanks to set pieces, but the execution left a lot to be desired. Klaksvik almost scored at the end! The hosts created the perfect moment, but the ball after hitting Danielsen hit the defender who was standing on the goal. The Russian coach in those seconds must have felt uncomfortable. Cherchesov’s team could not resolve doubts about how to reach the next qualifying round in one game. Now everything will be decided in the second leg in Budapest. Ferencvaros and Klaksvik will meet again in a week, on July 19.
