Lech Poznań - FC Midtjylland 2:1

The Saturday clash with FC Midtyjlland is the fourth training match of the pre-season. So far, the team from Poznan won twice – against Widzew Lodz (3:0) and Broendby IF (1:0) – and lost once, to AEK Larnaca (1:3).

The Polish team started applying high pressing since the very first whistle. The tactics resulted in frequent goal-scoring opportunities. For example, in the 10^th minute, Crnomarković’s header flew just slightly above the crossbar. In most of their offensive attempts, Lech slowly built their attacks from the back. Nonetheless, 15 minutes into the game neither of the teams managed to take full control of the match; most of the play revolved around midfield where the players fought to take possession of the ball.

In the 23^rd minute, the Danish side attacked and came close to scoring, but the ball stopped on the crossbar. A couple of minutes later, Lech got a chance to change the score. Klups crossed the ball into the box where Zhamaletdinov was waiting, however, the latter’s shot was successfully blocked by the defenders.

Finally, in the 34^th minute, Lech’s attempts brought desired results. Kostevych was the one who placed the ball in the back of the net from outside the penalty area with a very precise shot. Shortly before halftime, FC Midtyjlland got a perfect opportunity to equalize but their attempt was stopped by Lech’s new goalkeeper.

Zuraw didn’t make any changes in the line-up during halftime, hence the team from Poznan kicked off the second half in the same formation. In the 53^rd minute, the Danish side equalized when van der Hart failed to stop da Silva’s follow-up shot from falling into the net. The excitement of fans increased, even more so when a few minutes later Lech scored again. This time Amaral dribbled around the defenders until one of them fouled the Portuguese in the penalty box. Without any hesitation, the referee awarded Lech with a penalty kick which Jevtic effortlessly converted into a goal.

The two teams continued attacking at a high intensity. Van der Hart was frequently forced to intervene, but he made no mistakes. Even in the 67^th minute when Mabil received a pass inside the box, the keeper stopped the ball from crossing the goal line.

Lech’s coach decided to send in a number of new players on the pitch, including Moder who, shortly after coming on the field, fired a precise and strong shot at the goal. However, his attempt was easily blocked by Midtyjlland’s defenders. The Danish keeper was forced to intervene again a few moments later.

The last couple of minutes were indisputably dominated by the Polish side. Lech forced the Danes to move deep into their penalty area and defend whilst the Poles attacked from all sides. Nonetheless, the lack of precision meant no more goals were scored that evening, hence the game ended with a 2:1 win for the team from Poznan.

Lech Poznań - FC Midtjylland 2:1 (1:0)

Goals: Volodymyr Kostevych (34.), Darko Jevtić (56. pen.) - Pauolo Victor da Silva (53.)

Yellow cards: Crnomarković, Kostevych - Wikheim, Hansen K.,

Lech Poznań: Mickey van der Hart (73. Miłosz Mleczko) - Tomasz Cywka (73. Wiktor Pleśnierowicz), Thomas Rogne (73. Tomasz Dejewski), Djordje Crnomarković, Volodymyr Kostevych (52. Tymoteusz Puchacz) - Karlo Muhar (73. Mateusz Skrzypczak), Pedro Tiba (73. Jakub Moder) - Tymoteusz Klupś, Darko Jevtić (73. Filip Marchwiński), Joao Amaral (73. Jakub Kaminski) - Timur Zhamaletdinov (73. Paweł Tomczyk)

FC Midtyjlland (starting line-up): Jesper Hansen - Kian Hansen, Manjrah James, Alexander Scholz, Joel Andersson, Frank Onyeka, Ayo Simon Okosun, Evander da Silva, Paulo Victor da Silva, Junior Brumado, Gustav M. Wikheim