Sparta signed 21-year-old Slovak central defender David Hancko on a year-long loan from Fiorentina. Looks like a smart move for club and player, but with the ways recent signings have gone I'm sure Sparta will mess it up somehow.
We've missed a penalty and hit the post 3 times not to mention a few other near misses. I still expect a win, but there are some clear changes needed. Secvik is a central midfielder, stop playing him on the wing. Van Buren is a starting winger or a change of pace striker, Jusuf should be starting. Karvina have a really nice little stadium.
And its over, ridiculously bad luck and a ridiculously bad penalty from Soucek cost us 2 points. Soucek has kind of sucked this year.
Sparta 3 - 0 Pribram Despite the score Sparta more or less the same problems. 2 goals were penalties and the other a freekick, Kozak and also at this point also Travnik are looking more and more likes busts. Everything revolves around Kanga and Hlozek. Pribram aren't bottom of the table but they look like the worst team in the league each time I've seen them.
I wouldn't say Soucek is playing bad except for his finishing honestly. I think last year was a bit of a aberration from a goal scoring standpoint. I do agree with you about Sevcik, and I think Stanciu should be started on the left. I think that Jusuf is still unproven.
Slavia will take on either Celtic or Cluj for a spot in Champions League. Probably the 2nd easiest possible draw after Kobenhaven/Red Star, and if they can incorporate a good defensive signing in the next few weeks their chances probably go from 55% to 70%.
I expect we will be facing Celtic. If we still had Deli and MNN that would actually be an easy contest, we can still advance but it is a much more even contest now.
Rumors of two big transfers out of the league's mid-table: Nikolai Komlicenko is being linked with Lokomotiv Moscow, he is a pure goalscorer but looked limited against tougher competition. So a loss for Mlada Boleslav, but I think perhaps not as big as the goal total would make it seem. Oscar Dorley of Slovan Liberec is apparently close to a move to Manchester City. People have definitely speculated that Oscar would move up to one of the top domestic clubs or a better league as he is an excellent defensive midfielder, but I don't think anyone saw this much of a jump happening. While a big opportunity it does seem like a questionable transfer to be honest, I don't think he is quite that good and at 21 its he's a bit old to be seen as a prospect. Neither move is complete but speculation on both (as well as the English transfer deadline) point to before the end of the week.
Sparta leads Trabanzpor 1-0 at halftime. They started really bright and are still the better team, but kind of a rough match. They are missing Hlozek due to illness so they've done this missing a big piece. If they get 2+goals from this have to like their chances to advance.
Sparta 2 - 0 now, another big goal for Kanga. I hope they have a raise package (or at least an increase in buy-out) in mind as he is carrying that team this season.
Sparta 2 - 1 Trabonzspor A tired foul by an again underwhelming Travnik. And now 2-2, because typical bad defense by Sparta. What looked like a sure advancement is now at best 50-50. Sparta completely outplayed their opponent and are now behind on away goals going into the return leg. Kozak and Travnik look like complete flops and increasingly so does the new manager Jilek.
Antwerp 1 - Plzen 0 : Plzen's offense looks very stale both in Europe and domestically the past few weeks, although they picked up as the match went on and nearly grabbed an away goal late. Considering how much better they are at home this isn't a terrible result but certainly not good either. FCSB 0 - 0 Mlada Boleslav: Mlada Boleslav continue to be surprisingly competent in Europe. A good but not decisive result away against a favored opponent.
The Oscar Dorley move to Manchester City (or rather to Girona and several years of random CFC loans) fell through, and he is now being heavily linked to Slavia. More his level, but not really a position of need for Slavia unless they plan on using Kral as a Central Defender this season.
Another match with a lot of possession but no real bite in the attack. I still feel our team is almost as good as last season on paper, but the cohesion isn't there yet. We've put it together for short bursts but none of the consistency of last season.
Dnes has an article where people from Slovan and Slavia confirm a move is in the works, with an autumn loan keeping Oscar in Liberec. Soucek's new contract has a release clause that starts in January... draw your own conclusions.
I think Plzen needs to begin seriously considering replacing Vrba. The team has been getting worse each season since his return, and this summer they actually invested in reinforcements but still look very stale. He is rightfully a club legend for building the Plzen dynasty to begin with, but football is an evolving game and I think he is stuck in his ways.
Well Sparta just equalized on what was either luck or a remarkably well placed header (most likely some combination) off the corner by the recently arrived Hancko. Not sure how Kozak doesn't have at least a yellow, he (inadvertently) caught a defender in the face with his elbow and in general has made a few cheap fouls trying to win the ball in midfield... Well I know why he hasn't, he plays for Sparta.
Hancko looks good as a target on corners, but he can't defend to save his life today... so he fits right in. Mesanovic is giving Mlada Boleslav fans some consolation for life after Komlicenko. So maybe this official just forgot his cards more than is biased. He's letting a lot of rough challenges go un-cautioned
This Mlada Boleslav - Sparta match is hillarious... Sparta evens it up off another corner, and less than a minute later Mesanovic gets a hat-trick.
4-3.... this was the match of the season for all of its craziness. Mlada Boleslav deserve the 3 points, really excellent match but Sparta are a disaster in defense.