After the international break, our record champions and UEL main draw men's football team took to the field again in the Fizz League. In the 14th round of the championship, we welcomed Nyíregyháza to the Groupama Arena, whom we last beat 4-1 away on August 9. Robbie Keane sent Dibusz, Cissé, Ötvös, Szalai, Makreckis, Tóth, Kanikovszki, Levi, Nagy - Joseph, Pesics into battle.

Before the match, Ferencvárosi Torna Club president Gábor Kubatov welcomed Hungarian national team striker Barnabás Varga, the league's leading scorer, who was voted Fradi fans' Player of the Month for October.

First half

The match did not start well, as Manner scored a spectacular goal in the third minute to give Nyíregyháza the lead (0-1). Minutes later, the visitors had two dangerous corners, but were unable to score another goal. After Nyíregyháza's quick goal, our team was able to regroup and gradually took control of the match. 

In the 15th minute, Barnabás Nagy's pass was blocked by a visiting player, resulting in a free kick. Kanikovszki took aim at the goal from the left corner of the penalty area, but his shot was inaccurate. We tried to keep the pressure on the Nyíregyháza defense. Joseph had chances in the 22nd and 24th minutes, but failed to find the target on either occasion. A minute later, he threatened again, but his shot was saved by Kovács.

After half an hour of play, Nyíregyháza broke free from the pressure, Gilbert started from the left and spotted Kovácsréti coming in from deep, who calmly shot into the goal (0-2). Ten minutes later, the visitors had another chance, but Dibusz saved Babunski's attempt to the bottom left corner.

The score remained unchanged in the first half, with the visitors leading 2-0 at the break.

Second half

Robbie Keane made three substitutions during the break, with Makreckis, Kanikovszki, and Levi remaining in the dressing room and Cadu, Abu Fani, and Gruber coming on.

Two substitutions led to our first chance after the break, with Gruber shooting after Abu Fani's free kick, but he failed to hit the target. In the 53rd minute, Katona B.'s shot missed Dibusz's goal. Two minutes later, there was a chance at the other end, with Cadu's pass finding Pesics, who slid it wide, and then Gruber's low free kick was saved by Kovács.

In the 60th minute, we used our last two substitutions, with Varga and Yusuf coming on, the former replacing Pesics and the latter replacing Nagy. Fradi continuously tried to break through Nyíregyháza's defensive line with crosses, short passes, and balls played behind the defenders, but the final passes, headers, and shots failed to find a teammate or the goal. In the 75th minute, Abu Fani's low shot flew past the far post.

In the last minute of regular time, Ötvös tried his luck from 35 meters, but his shot went well wide of the goal. A minute later, Gruber got past Toma and fell inside the box. The referee awarded a free kick, but VAR indicated that a foul may have been committed. Bognár reviewed the footage and pointed to the penalty spot. Gruber stepped up and shot into the right side of the goal (1-2).

Nyíregyháza went on the attack immediately after the kick-off, then Toma restored the two-goal difference (1-3). We pushed forward in the final minutes and did everything we could to score again, but we were unable to find another goal and suffered a 3-1 defeat.

Our men's soccer team will next play on Thursday, November 27, at 6:45 p.m. Hungarian time, as guests of Turkish club Fenerbahce in the UEFA Europa League main draw.