Ferencváros Continues in the UEL after Champions League Exit

Ferencváros (FTC) played out a 1-1 draw with guest Midtjylland in Tuesday’s second leg. This result means that the Danish team can progress with a 3-1 aggregate score from the third round of the Champions League qualifier.

The Green-and-Whites halved their away deficit with a goal from Frenchman Ibrahim Cissé, but the Danish champions equalized early in the second half through Oliver Sörensen, and from then on the Hungarian side had no realistic chance of turning the tie around. Ferencváros failed to win for the eighth time in their history against their Danish rivals.

As the losers of the match, FTC will progress to the UEFA Europa League (UEL) playoff round, where they will play the winner of the Banja Luka-Klasvík match.

Head coach Pascal Jansen said that Ferencváros showed they can play well against Midtjylland despite being knocked out. “We could see that we can play well, because just like abroad, we were better than the opponent in the first half. We showed ourselves to be quick learners, but the Champions League can be brutal because the slightest mistake can pay off,” said the Dutch coach, who was appointed in the summer, at the post-match press conference. Of his players, he singled out goalkeeper Dénes Dibusz for his important saves at the end of the first half, but also called the bravura of the Danish goalkeeper at the start of the second half a crucial moment as he thought Rommens’ shot would be a goal.

Jansen stressed that the main reason for the loss was the exploitation of the situation. He said his team created enough chances to progress, but failed to convert them. He did not explain this by the absence of Barnabás Varga, who was unable to play due to a facial injury suffered at the European Championship, because although he considers him an excellent striker with a great personality, he does not want to look back but forward to the future and is therefore eagerly awaiting his recovery.

Via MTI, Featured image: MTI/Hegedüs Róbert