Football
Cherchesov will still fight! His team is rushing to the Champions League after an epic comeback
Ferencváros retreated in the first match, but took their toll in the second leg. The Russian coach is already one step away from the group stage of the Champions League!
The Russian head coach of Ferencváros, Stanislav Cherchesov, tried on the role of a commander even in the national team – for the time being, it turned out very successfully. After the defeat in the “battle of Copenhagen”, the specialist briefly retired, and then led the new football army – “Ferencvaros”.
With the club, the coach has already conquered Hungary, and now he intends to make some noise in Europe. The failure in the first game with Slovan cast doubt on the prospects of the Budapest team in the Champions League, so the capital’s fans even began to drive the Russian commander home …
But Cherchesov will still fight.
“It doesn’t always work out the way you want”
Leaving the coaching post in the Russian national team after Euro 2020, Stanislav Cherchesov did not receive a worthy offer from the RPL clubs. The coach spent several months on forced leave, and in December 2021 he headed the Hungarian Ferencváros, replacing Peter Steger. Already in his first season, the 58-year-old specialist led the Budapest team to victory in the national championship and managed to take the Hungarian Cup. Now here is trying to storm the Champions League.
Ferencváros started its European path this season from the first round of qualification. Fans had to worry a little during the meeting with the first opponent. Kazakhstani “Tobol” did not allow guests from Hungary to score on their field – the first game ended with a score of 0:0. However, in the return match, Cherchesov’s wards went through the team like a skating rink from the banks of the Tobol River, defeating it 5:1.
In the second round of qualifying for the Green Eagles, the Slovak Slovan was waiting for victories, led to victories by another of our old acquaintances – the ex-coach of Saturn Vladimir Weiss. This team went into the next round not without difficulty, having beaten Dynamo from Batumi in a stubborn confrontation.
At first glance, Slovan is not the team that was able to stop Ferencváros. At least the bookmakers preferred Cherchesov’s team. However, in European competitions, the favorites stumble very often – the Budapest club also failed in the first match, unexpectedly losing 1:2 in its field. This defeat should have annoyed Stanislav Salamovich, because his team was leading in the middle of the second half, but eventually managed to miss the victory in the end.
– It’s a pity. It doesn’t always work out the way you want. Satisfied with our game, if you do not take into account the five minutes of the match. Look at the statistics. In the return match, we need to change the situation, – quoted the Russian specialist Nemzeti Sport.
“Able to fix the situation”
Fans after the failure in the home match with Slovan called Cherchesov an idiot and a saboteur and suggested that the coach go home. The specialist himself also did not glow with happiness, but still looked to the future with restrained optimism.
“Our team is capable of rectifying the situation. We have the necessary players for this. We have to come up with the right attitude and keep our concentration throughout the match,” Ferencváros’ official website quoted the head coach as saying.
In the first half, the right players with the right attitude were found. In the 20th minute, the Ivorian Frank Boli received a cross from Eldar Civic and outplayed the Slovan goalkeeper from close range. The goal was partly a consequence of the performance skills of the guests, but without a defense error that missed the pass, it could not have done.
The score became equal, but Cherchesov’s wards were not going to relax. After 10 minutes, the Ferencváros players sent the ball into the opponent’s net for the second time – this allowed the Hungarian club to already feel their superiority in the confrontation.
The guests managed to effectively play a free kick. The canopy was performed again by Civic – the transfer did not reach the goal. The defender tried to clear the ball, but actually sent the ball to the player of the Hungarian team Sami Mmae. He either beat, or wanted to otpasovat. In any case, the ball hit the head of the midfielder of the Budapest club Christoffer Zakariassen, and from her it was already right on target. After such a moment, even Cherchesov allowed himself a slight smile.
In the second half, the fairy tale almost ended. Slovan midfielder Tigran Barseghyan in the 70th minute made a good cross from the corner flag – Vernon de Marco had only to send the ball to the Ferencváros goal. The tribunes perked up and even began to sing. They probably thought that the Cherchesov “army” would again give up.
But this time the Hungarian club took the ending. In the 89th minute, Adama Traore sent the ball to the target with a volley shot, and then hit the goalkeeper from a distance, Aissa Laiduni. Stanislav Salamovich joyfully ran at the edge of the field, his charges festivals on the lawn. It was clear to everyone that the 4-1 score in stoppage time for the second half made Slovan’s resistance useless. Ferencvaros defeated an uncomfortable opponent in Bratislava and is rushing to the Champions League group stage. Now Cherchesov’s team is waiting for “Karabakh”.
Source: Sportbox
I am a sports writer and journalist who has written for various online publications including Sportish. I’m originally from the UK but currently live in Toronto, Canada. I’m also an author on Sportish and have written several articles on a variety of sports-related topics.