Will it be the 25th? That was the question ahead of the 84th MOL Hungarian Cup final, as our club has reached the final 35 times in the tournament’s history—which dates back to 1910—and has won the country’s second-most prestigious trophy 24 times.

As our head coach, Robbie Keane, said before the match, everyone in the squad was available (except, of course, the injured players, Bence Ötvös and Stefan Gartenmann), and despite the intense league race, the team focused solely on the MOL Hungarian Cup final during the past week.

The match against ZTE was by no means expected to be easy, as the Blue-Whites had won both of our head-to-head league matches in the Fizz League.

Robbie Keane sent out the following lineup:
Dibusz – Makreckis, M. Gómez, Raemaekers –  Cadu, Kanikovszki, Zachariassen, Rommens, O'Dowda – Joseph, Gruber.

The teams were greeted by some 40,000 fans at Puskás Arena, the vast majority of whom were green-and-white supporters.

First Half

In the 5th minute, Zsombor Gruber made some beautiful moves inside the Zala team’s penalty area, but he was unable to shoot from the goal line because he was tackled at the last moment. Our opponents didn’t have much possession, but in the 10th minute, they managed to create a small chance thanks to a misplaced pass from the back. In the 13th minute, Gundel-Takács was forced to make his first save after Gruber’s powerful shot toward the center. A minute later, Akpe Victory got a touch on Joseph’s cross, and the ball nearly found the bottom right corner of the ZTE goal.

ZTE defended with discipline, and although we had much more possession in the first half, we were unable to create any truly dangerous scoring opportunities in front of the opponent’s goal. In the 45th minute, a headed ball found its way to Gavriel Kanikovszki, who cleverly aimed for the bottom right corner, but unfortunately his shot missed the target. Thus, the teams went into halftime with the score tied at 0-0.

Second Half

Neither coach made any substitutions at halftime, and the pattern of the match remained unchanged: we controlled possession, while ZTE tried to launch counterattacks from their solid defense, but they rarely managed to get close to Dénes Dibusz’s goal. It’s true that we weren’t able to create any serious scoring chances in front of Gundel-Takács’s goal either. In the 61st minute, Zachariassen’s shot went just wide of the right post.

In the 64th minute, both teams made their first substitutions: Robbie Keane sent Yusuf onto the field in place of Gruber. Yusuf’s more aggressive and physical play changed the complexion of the match within moments; Fradi’s attacking play became even more effective, and our play in front of the goal also became more forceful.

Our opponents didn’t change their approach, yet in the 77th minute they came close to scoring; after winning the ball, Bence Kiss curled a shot just wide of the top left corner. On the other end, Bence Gundel-Takács headed a ball back toward the goal, striking Lenny Joseph in the head; the rebound missed the lower left corner of the Zala goal by just inches. 

In the 79th minute, Gábor Szalai and Abu Fani came on for Cadu and Zachariassen. We completely pinned ZTE back in the final minutes, and in the 86th minute, Gundel-Takács made his first real save of the match, preventing O’Dowda’s header from finding the bottom right corner. No goals were scored, so the match went into extra time. (0-0)

Extra Time

Less than three minutes into stoppage time, Amato brought down Corbu, who had entered the game in the 91st minute. Referee Márton Rúsz pointed to the penalty spot, and the VAR upheld the decision. Yusuf took the penalty, but his shot down the middle was saved by the diving Gundel-Takács.

In the 102nd minute, Yusuf had a chance to make amends with a header, but despite his superb header off Makreckis’ cross, the ZTE goalkeeper pushed the ball away from under the crossbar. We practically pinned ZTE back in their own penalty area, but even our best chances went begging.

In the second half of extra time, in the 111th minute, Abu Fani played a ball into the corner for Yusuf, who shot from the edge of the box, but Gundel-Takács made the save. A corner followed. And finally a Fradi goal! Abu Fani rolled the ball back almost to the edge of the box, and Toon Raemaekers blasted it into the top left corner without a moment’s hesitation! (1-0)

We could have extended our lead in the final minutes, but never mind! The main thing is that we’ve secured our 25th Hungarian Cup title!