FK Partizan - OFK Beograd 1:1 (Jelen SuperLiga, previously postponed match)

First, I start with an image that says all about this match.

(photo: Google)

Škuletić kept up his habit of saying hi to the goalkeeper with a shot in the first minute. His distant kick was too wide, it flew out of the field near the goalpost. Apart from this the opponent had a stronger start. They tried Lukač’s nerves in the 3rd minute. A pass came from the right side, Janković shot dangerously, he barely missed.
About a minute later it was Lazović laying on the grass after being kicked off hard. Free kick for Partizan, the distance from the goal line is approx. 18 metres. Goalkeeper Čupić made a great save, followed by an upheaval in front of OFK’s goal line, finally the ball rolled out through the line. Corner for Partizan.
In the 7th minute Partizan’s defense line made a mistake. Janković immediately grabbed the ball and made a distant but powerful shot. Lukač caught it.
OFK started to pressure Partizan, and it got more and more uncomfortable. In the first 10 minutes the game was going on almost only on our half. We had a try in the 10th minute, Ninković dribbled himself through OFK’s half. The ball was dropping here and there, finally Škuletić got it, but headed the ball too high above the goalpost. After this OFK continued to pressure.

In the 13th minute Živković had a big sprint at the opponent’s penalty area. Upheaval, the ball was headed out, Branko Ilić was knocked on the ground. Corner for Partizan, someone made a balloon shot, finally the goalkeeper punched the ball out of the penalty area.
OFK kept on running, they seemed to be stronger and more creative about building up attacks than the rather exhausted-looking Partizan. Škuletić was knocked off in the 17th minute, about 20-22 metres from OFK’s goal line. The goalkeeper saved the free kick easily.
In the 20th minute Partizan had a great chance. Škuletić got the ball and ran up immediately to the opponent’s penalty area, with only one desperate defender behind him - and he shot the ball right into the goalkeeper.

At this period nothing much happened. There were lots of stolen balls by OFK, but they could never turn them for their own advantage.
In the 35th minute it could have been 1:0, but Lazović was on offside after Škuletić passed him the ball.

I swear at this point even ArenaSport’s presenter yawned.

In the 38th minute Škuletić got a pass from Branko Ilić, but the assistant waved offside. The slow motion replay didn’t confirm it clearly...
The 41st minute brought an attack by OFK from the right side. Ćirković tackled, but the ball dropped to Dražić. OFK’s striker - who had a unique haircut - dribbled a bit, then shot the ball into the net near Lukač, who slowly fell on the ground. 0:1
Then something interesting happened. Dražić stepped over the advertisement boards near the field. He ran up to the southern tribune and stood in front of the Grave Diggers without saying or doing anything. Partizan’s former youth academy player, prodigy Dejan Dražić scored against his own former team and didn‘t looked too happy at all.

In the meantime the referee started to collapse. He was whistling continuously, and it just got worse as time passed. Yet it was still a smash on the face for Partizan that the opponent was leading, while we could breathe only through our ears and stared out of our head with horror glaze. In the 44th minute Živković, the little hero tried something. He got the ball from Lazović, shook the defender off himself and shot. The goalkeeper had to throw himself to save it. The next attack came immediately. Škuletić fought himself through the defense line on the left side and shot to the middle, but the goalkeeper saved. The ball dropped back to the Montenegrin striker, who passed it to Branko Ilić. The defender kicked, the goalkeeper made a great save.
The second half’s keyword was "offside". Partizan picked themselves together in the half time and kept on attacking, while OFK played the "offside tactics". The game was fragmented, the referee was whistling without pause, I think this was the point when he absolutely lost control. Partizan missed a big chance in the 48th minute. Škuletić passed in the middle, but nobody was there. Upheaval, finally the assistant waved offside.
A minute later again offside. In the meantime Stanković almost got into a fight with a defender of the guests inside OFK’s penalty area.

The atmosphere heated up, the referee was unable to control it anymore. In the 56th minute Partizan got a free kick. The referee was yelling and fighting with the defenders about making the wall, everyone had only one nerve left and the yellow guy was dancing right on that one nerve... Finally Drinčić ran, kicked and the ball hit the goalpost.
Then until the 65th minute the game was only about Partizan trying to attack and the referee whistling for offside. Finally Petrović ran up on the left side and passed in the middle. Škuletić arrived sliding, but he just missed the ball with one step. But Lazović was there, appearing out of the blue, kicking the ball into OFK’s net. 1:1

A minute later again Škuletić attacked, but he slid out of the field together with the ball. The 68th minute brought again him into the spotlight, missing another huge chance. He got the ball, shot, the ball flew through the goalkeeper’s open legs - and hit the goalpost.
Two minutes later the guest team had a try. Gajić made a distant shot. Lukač caught it, but Partizan’s goalkeeper surely had Lady Luck behind him. Two minutes later again OFK attacked, Ješić had a distant and dangerous shot, saved this time by the goalpost.

After Partizan’s equalizing goal the atmosphere didn‘t get any more peaceful. OFK gave up offside tactics, but the players attacked rather each other, or the referee, or even once the assistant. One free kick followed the other, mostly by Partizan, OFK players made lots of fouls. In the 82nd minute they got a free kick (probably the referee thought they also deserve it after Partizan got so many...), but the shot flew too wide above Lukač’s goal line. The 88th minute brought another Partizan free kick, almost at the corner flag. The kick was headed out by OFK defenders, but Luka grabbed the ball and passed to Lazović. The referee whistled the attack off, for everyone’s surprise. (I can only guess, but for me it looked as the referee thought Partizan’s striker attacked the goalkeeper.)

The rest of the game was about how NOT to be a referee. Then thankfully it was over, we even got 1 point.

Branko Ilić: Come on, not now, not in front of the others...

Highlights:

Facts:

Location: Partizan Stadion
Number of spectators: 2000
Referee: Nenad Đokić (assistants: Dejan Petrović, Nemanja Petrović - 4th assistant: Bojan Stanojević - goal line assitants: Dejan Filipović, Igor Stoilković)

FK Partizan: Lukač - Stevanović (S. Ilić, 46.), Ćirković, Stanković, Petrović - Živković, B. Ilić, Drinčić, Ninković (Luka, 46.) - Škuletić (Fofana, 77.), Lazović
Head coach: Marko Nikolić

OFK Beograd: Čupić - Vasilić, Vasiljević, Savić, Antonov - Dražić, Gajić, Janković, Zdjelar, Andrić (Jesić, 66.) - Jovanović (Alempijević, 88.)
Head coach: Dejan Đurđević

Goal scoarers: Lazović (65.), ill. Dražić (41.)
Yellow card: Ninković (41.), Zdjelar (49.), Vasiljević (56.), Antonov (73.), Gajić (76.), Ćirković (80.)
Red card: Antonov (90+3.), second yellow card

Current championship standings:
1. Partizan 25 pont
2. Vojvodina 25 pont
3. Crvena Zvezda 23 pont
4. Čukarički 18 pont
5. Novi Pazar 16 pont
6. OFK Beograd 16 pont
7. Mladost 16 pont
8. Spartak Zlatibor Voda 15 pont
9. Rad 11 pont
10. Jagodina 11 pont
11. Donji Srem 11 pont
12. Borac 10 pont
13. Radnički Niš 9 pont
14. Napredak 7 pont
15. FK Voždovac 7 pont
16. Radnički 1923 4 pont

(unmarked photos: Facebook/Fudbalski klub Partizan)