LOSC Lille (France) – FC Krasnodar (Russia) – 1:1 (0:1)
Goals: Laborde, 35 (Akhmedov, 0:1), Kjær, 63 (1:1, free kick).
LOSC Lille (France): Enyeama, Corchia, Kjær, Basa, Souaré, Balmont (Mendes, 77), Mavuba(Delaplace, 46), Gueye, Lopes, Origi, Roux (Frey, 46).
FC Krasnodar (Russia): Dykan, Jędrzejczyk, Granqvist, Sigurðsson, Kaleshin, Gazinskiy, Akhmedov, Pereyra, Laborde (Wánderson, 70), Izmailov (Bystrov, 69, Burmistrov, 86), Ari.
Yellow cards: Granqvist, 19, (foul play), Gazinskiy, 62 (attack breakdown), Bystrov, 78 (foul play), Jędrzejczyk, 83 (unsporting behaviour).
Referees: Liany, Nahmias, Borneshtain, Grinfeld, Masiah (all Israel).
18 September. France. Lille. Grand Stade Lille Métropole. Overcast. 22 degrees. 31 000 spectators.
FC Krasnodar made a start in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League with an away game against the opponent enjoying rather serious repute in the Old World, and it is no kidding that LOSC Lille, a constant guest to the UEFA Cups, approached the match with the Bulls as a sole leader of the Ligue 1, French domestic championship
Oleg Kononov, the coach of the Black-greens, could not count in this particular game on Joãozinho who had been suspended and was substituted in the starting 11 by Laborde. As for the rest, the team composition was not far from the strongest one. René Girard, the LOSC boss, fielded virtually the same optimal combination of the players for the match.
Reservoir Dogs was the headline of an official match booklet boasting the Great Danes nickname of LOSC written by the authors into the name of the classic gangster action movie by Quentin Tarantino. However the home team made an opening completely out of accordance with this title. On the contrary, the Bulls finished their very first attack with a shot out of the box, but a defender prevented Akhmedov from getting the ball into the net.
And then the thick power football started, the type of football which supposedly the French team should take to as a duck to water. They actually did, but it was to no advantage whatsoever as the Krasnodar team did not yield to their opposition, not in a single game component. At the same time all the approaches to Dykan’s domain were cut off tight, and when on the 8th minute a rebound from Granqvist made the shot by Balmont from very afar suddenly troublesome, the goalkeeper of the Bulls shifted in proper time and stopped the threat.
Another dangerous situation next to the away team’s goal took place when the first quarter of an hour was almost over and the corner was being executed… on the opposite half of the pitch. The Great Danes beat it off and launched a swift counterattack which was finished with a shot from 15 meters by Origi but he missed the far corner. The first half’s equator saw the hardworking Balmont once again making a super long shot with the rebound being his pal; this time the ball got its treacherous path from Ari’s leg and hit the outer part of the FC Krasnodar’s goalpost.
The Russian squad was diligent in searching for their own game and starting from the 25th minute they were grasping it little by little. Then it was Enyeama who managed to interrupt the sharp drill cross by Laborde from the left merely with a desperate jump, and Izmailov was left behind at the rebound by an opponent. Finally on the 35th minute the goal-scoring attack came from the right flank; the fun thing was that while at it FC Krasnodar replied to the French rebounds with two of their own. The first one occurred after the horizontal pass by Jędrzejczyk and thanks to him the ball arrived to Akhmedov. Odil gracefully with his heel let it go on a little bit farther to Ricardo Laborde, and the attempt of some home team players to cover the Colombian resulted in the ball flying precisely into the goal’s corner in a path unreachable by the LOSC keeper.
The Great Danes after conceding a goal were clearly taken aback. Until the end of the first half FC Krasnodar controlled the game confidently, and on the 43rd minute after the ball served from the corner of the pitch Granqvist shot on goal but hit precisely into goalkeeper’s position. And when the single minute of the stoppage time set by the ref started, the Bulls were really obliged to score their second goal and see the opposition off to the dressing room. Laborde wasn’t greedy in moving Ari into an ideal spot with an accurate pass, Enyeama coped with the Brazilian’s shot but the rebound went to the very same Colombian and Ricardo kicked the ball hammer and tongs over the crossbar of the virtually empty French goal …
The second goal in the game like that could have decided a lot, and another most certain chance to score was missed by the Bulls in the very opening of the second half. Akhmedov in a counterattack ran away for a rendezvous with Enyeama, but alas, Odil’s low shot did not confuse the Nigerian goalie of LOSC. The home team could not boast such moments at all! On the 57th minute they reminded of themselves with a routine volley out of the box, and Dykan was confident in parrying the shot made by Lopes into the low corner.
And still, the long-range artillery of Les Nordistes got their own way on the 63rd minute. Ari was unconcerned to lose the ball and Gazinskiy had to commit a foul stopping the break-through of the pushy Balmont in the centre. The yellow card shown to the No. 8 of the Bulls became the lesser punishment for the away team, and the worst of them all was a skillful shot by Simon Kjær from a free kick over the defensive wall; Dykan in flight likely even brushed the ball with his gloves, but he failed to block its way into the net.
Inspired by this success the home team rushed forward, but the Krasnodar players with their tactically competent performance did not allow the Great Danes to go wild. Two subs by Oleg Kononov on the brink of the 70th minute made it clear that the draw is completely not okay with the Bulls. Wánderson and Bystrov who came out as subs for the two flank forwards of the Bulls, Laborde and Izmailov, were called on to freshen up and speed up the game, and it was done. The away team once again started to act more dangerously in attack that the home one. Wánderson made an aimed roundhouse kick on the 74th minute from the line of the penalty area, but the ball passed next to the goalpost. Six minutes later it was Ari who tried to make a header and finish the cross of his partner from the end line, to no good.
Unfortunately Bystrov, who came in where the action was, couldn’t play the game to the end; in one of the episodes he sustained an injury and had to be substituted by Burmistrov on the pitch. In the very end both opposing teams strived for a victory and shared the most dangerous shots: Wánderson of FC Krasnodar after the pass by Ari directed the ball just a little above the target, and Lopes, halfback of the home team, in a similar position shot a bit to the right of the goal. As a result, the 1:1 digits remained on the scoreboard after the final whistle. FC Krasnodar obtained their first point in the group stage, and since they did it in away match against a strong opposition, this result can be deemed quite positive. Although considering the way the game went the Bulls could have really achieved even more…