Conference League Starts with a Win for Ferencváros

Ferencváros came from behind to win 3-1 at home against Serbian side FK Čukarički in the opening round of the Conference Football League on Thursday.

The match was preceded by a minute’s silence in memory of the victims of the earthquake in Morocco and the floods in Libya.

The Hungarian champion took the initiative from the first minute, and they had much more possession, but due to their opponents’ massive defense they could not get near the goal at first. However, the Serbian rivals were unable to hold on to the ball for any length of time as Ferencváros continued to attack, and they hardly crossed the half-court at all, meaning the Green and Whites’ dominance was maintained until goalkeeper Dénes Dibusz saved the first worthwhile action of the visiting team.

The visitors took the lead in the 26th minute through Đorđe Ivanović‘s pinpoint shot.

However, Ferencváros turned the game around before the break through Barnabás Varga’s penalty and a beautiful shot from Ghana’s Kwabwena Owusu.

The final score was set by Serbian substitute Aleksandar Pešić in the 79th minute (3-1).

After the half-time changeover, the game followed the same pattern: Ferencváros controlled and attacked, while their opponents were forced to defend, unable to even mount a sporadic counter-attack. As time went on, the Hungarian team’s superiority became more and more overwhelming, and the Serbian goalkeeper had to make several big saves to prevent the team from falling further behind.

In the end, the Hungarian team had to settle for a 3-1 victory in the first home meeting for head coach Dejan Stanković, who was energetic from the sidelines throughout the whole game.

In two weeks’ time, the Hungarian champions will host Italy’s Fiorentina in the second round.

The Italian team started this season with a 2-2 draw away to Belgian side Genk in Group F. The group winners will progress to the last eight.

Via MTI, Featured image via MTI/Illyés Tibor