Oh, and the players were wearing the brand new 2015/16 jersey. Looks fine, well, definitely better than that grey piece of cloth from last year.
Before the match Partizan’s management gave a golden plaquette to Veljko Paunović for his World Cup title with the U20 team.
Fans greeted Paunović with ovation and great applause.
We had an attempt already in the 5th minute. Aboubakar passed the ball out to the right side to Vulićević. He shot it to the middle, where Brašanac welcomed it and headed it right to the goal line. The ball still flew out next to the goalpost. Two minutes later we got a free kick about 40 metres from the goal line on the left. Ninković stood behind the ball, shot, the ball flew out above the crossbar.
In the 10th minute again Brašanac got the ball. He ran up with it in the middle, the passed to the left to Petrović. Petrović kicked it to middle, to Babović, but Babović was pampering the ball too long, eventually he was tackled. No problem, we still got a corner kick. Georgian defenders headed the ball out, but we still possessed it. Aboubakar tried some tricks, then shot, but it was too high.
I think, this was when the Georgian team had their first real attack - but even this one could be made after Ćirković’s mistake. Their attacker ran up with the ball, it all seemed to be quite dangerous, finally Balažic tackled him. We immediately started a counter-attack, Aboubakar ran up on the left with the ball, but he was tackled inside the opponent’s penalty area. It ended in a corner.
After the first 15 minutes it was clear that Partizan is stronger, also Georgians switched to bunker football and we couldn’t really do anything with it. Partizan had approx. 3 players (Ninković, Brašanac and Petrović) who played well, fought a lot and tried to stay creative while building up attacks. Maybe Balažic, too, whenever Georgians happened to appear around our penalty area. The rest fell into the grey shades of mediocrity. Sometimes Aboubakar had a try, but as soon as he touched the ball, he was tackled, sometimes in a quite rough way. We had attempts from free kicks, e.g. in the 17th minute. Ninković shot it from the left sideline, but the goalkeeper punched it out of the goalmouth.
And so it was going. Our attempts died on the Georgian bunker, our free kicks missed the goal line. In the 28th minute Ninković tried with a sudden, distant and powerful shot from 20-22 metres. Goalkeeper Shevchenko demonstrated his great reflexes by saving it.
A minute later Brašanac gave a great pass to Petrović. Petrović shot from a sharp, left-side angle, the goalkeeper again had a great save. At this point there were numerous attempts by us, putting the Georgian goal line under pressure, but we couldn’t score. It ended in a counter-attack, Balažic and Ćirković stopped them.
Gregor Balažic, Slovenian axis of Partizan’s defense line
In the 33rd minute again Ninković sent a distant shot to the goal. The goalkeeper saved. Corner, Brašanac headed the kick to the goal line, barely missed. A minute later Dila Gori attacked. Their player shot from about 20 metres, but it was too high.
In the 37th minute Ninković passed the ball from deep to the middle. Aboubakar headed it to the goal line, but the attempt ended in a corner. It caused a goalmouth scramble in the Georgian penalty area. Babović tried with a shot, so did Balažic, finally defenders cleared the area.
In the 40th minute Bojinov tried with a not too powerful shot from 25 metres. Missed.
In the 42nd minute Georgians again made it to our penalty area. It was dangerous, but finally Jevtović stopped them, Živko Živković quickly grabbed the ball. In the meantime Ninković was pulled to the ground, additionally he was stomped, too. (But he returned to the field after a short medical attendance.)
Before the end of the first half Aboubakar got a pass from Bojinov. He shot from the right side, but the ball flew out of the field.
Fans some time during the match. The atmosphere was great, while we lacked actual football
The second half started with fans chanting "hoćemo pobedu", while nothing much happened on the field. Georgians kept on playing bunker football, Partizan didn’t seem to be able to solve this problem. In the 51st minute Aboubakar got the ball on the right side and passed it to Bojinov, but the Bulgarian attacker was tackled. In the 54th minute Ninković made a sudden shot from the left, the goalkeeper had a great save.
We kept the opponent under continuous pressure, we were attacking all the time, but the truth is, we barely had any real attempts or goal shots. The two strikers were lost in the Georgian maelstrom, while midfielders struggled to break their wall.
In the 60th minute young world champion Andrija Živković arrived at the field (as a substitute for Aboubakar). Fans greeted him with applause and chanting. (And yes, this was the only happening that broke the silence of monotony.)
In the 61st minute came the probably biggest chance of the entire match: Brašanac shot from the penalty area line. The ball hit the crossbar and dropped on the upper net. Average Fan was almost screaming GOAAAAL, but then it became a cardial arrest. In the 64th minute we got a free kick. Ninković shot, Brašanac headed it, Shevchenko saved.
Brašanac was undoubtedly the best player of the game
Did I hear well, that at this point fans booed Babović after his (x+1)th unsuccessful attempt?...
In the 70th minute Babović fumbled too long and missed out a chance - it was not the first and not the last time he did it, even though he got a great pass from Brašanac. Then in the 72nd minute Saša Ilić arrived as the substitute of Ninković.
Why? Why did Džigi have to come off? Why did one of the best and most active player leave the field? Why? And how did Babović rise to the level of holy cow?...
Nobody can stop the Boss
In the 76th minute Saša Ilić had a shot, but it wasn’t too powerful, the goalkeeper saved it easily.
In the 82nd minute the referee sent off Phalavandishvili. The Georgian player kicked Andrija Živković to the ground near the penalty line. He already had a yellow card, now the German referee showed him the red one. Free kick. Perfect angle. Saša Ilić and Babović stood behind the ball.
Did I hear well, that fans chanted the name of Andrija Živković, demanding him to shot the free kick?
Finally Babović shot. The ball flew into the net near Shevchenko. 1:0
Babinjo, God bless your heart. What a goddamned lucky bastard you are. The one and only difficulty in your life was to get born.
The pace was nearly dead in the second half, even the goal couldn’t make it any faster. The final minutes brought a bit of excitement though. After a Georgian defender passed the ball back to the goalkeeper, they made a mistake and the referee whistled a free kick for Partizan at the corner of the Georgian goalmouth.
It was something I have never seen before. I didn’t even know such exists. Well, you always learn something new.
Saša Ilić just touched the ball and Jevtović shot. Brašanac tried to push it somehow behind the goal line, but the goalkeeper saved.
In the 90+4th minute Šaponjić shot from right, the goalkeeper saved. Just moments before the final whistle Andrija Živković tried with a shot, but a defender blocked it. Ćirković, who was lurking there, immediately grabbed the ball and shot, but it was too high.
Then the referee ended our sufferings.
Return match will be on 21st July.
Highlights (of that one and only goal):
Facts:
Venue: Partizan Stadion, Belgrade
Number of spectators: 18 000
Referee: Bastian Dankert (assistants: Rafael Foltyn, René Rohde - 4th assistant: Benjamin Brand) - GER
FK Partizan: Ž. Živković - Vulićević, Balažic, Ćirković, N. Petrović - Jevtović - Aboubakar (A. Živković, 60.), Brašanac, Babović, Ninković (Ilić, 72.) - Bozsinov (Šaponjić, 77.)
Head coach: Zoran Milinković
Dila Gori: Shevchenko - Khurtsilava, Papava, Kvachadze, Kvikvelia - Phalavandishvili, Razmadze, Gvalia - Martsvaladze (Dzaria, 83.), Iluridze (Gongadze, 90.), Navalovski
Head coach: Ucha Sosiashvili
Goal scorer: Babović (82.)
Yellow card: Papava (7.), Martsvaladze (58.), Phalavandishvili (65.), Kvachadze (90+3.)
Red card: Phalavandishvili (82.), second yellow card
(photos: Facebook/Fudbalski klub Partizan)
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