Trpišovský’s incomprehensible moves. Slavie’s management team failed to make substitutions in Poland

Slavia exploded in the first match of the European Conference play-offs, losing to Raków Czestochowa 1:2 in Poland. The team, players as individuals did not fare well, but the management team does not have a clear conscience either. Especially because of the substitutions.

The starting line-up of Slavia could probably not be faulted. Maybe the deployment of Ivan Schranz at right-back, but that was understandable, as the Polish vice-champion was not expected to play so actively. The visitors were expected to dominate, but they didn’t.

The reactions to the development of the match were more surprising. In the first half, Oscar Dorley was injured at 1:0 for Raków and was not replaced by David Jurasek but by Srdjan Plavsic. Although the Serbian all-rounder assisted the only goal for Slavia, the bet on him was a huge surprise.

For three reasons. Jurásek was in excellent form at the beginning of the season, Plavšič hasn’t played in a single game so far and the left side of the Sešice defence was troubled by the Poles’ main offensive star Ivi Lopez. The Spanish forward scored the opening goal and was the man of the match for the rest of the minutes.

Plavsic’s indecisiveness was evident in Czestochowa’s second goal, when he miscued a charging Fran Tudor.

“He passed the ball for the goal, but at the same time he didn’t keep the player out when the goal was scored. It didn’t quite work out that way. If he hadn’t been there for the blunder it would have gone well, that’s just football. On the other hand, he helped us a lot offensively. The substitution was forced, even according to the condition. When we substituted Oscar, he was injured,” Trpišovský assessed Plavšič’s performance.

Let’s move on to the second half, at the start of which the coaches cleverly pulled the oft-erring Eduardo Santos out of the game, but did not send in the necessary spike striker. There was a big hole between the midfield and the attack, and the lone Ondrej Lingr had no chance against the home defence.

Now, let’s not address the surprising non-nomination of Daniel Fila, but why didn’t Schranz move to the attack and one of the right backs (David Douděra, Lukáš Masopust) come to the right defence? Schranz has been successful in battles with opposing players and would certainly do better than Lingr on the power play.

And Matěj Jurásek. At the beginning it is right to praise the 18-year-old talent for his effort and combativeness, but experience could have come into a similarly heated match. Masopust has been at two Europa League quarter-finals and a Champions League group stage and now hasn’t played a minute.

Yet so much is evident in Slavia’s performance that the team needs to find a skeleton. Six, seven players who will play the basis in 90 percent of the games. For the first time under Jindřich Trpišovský, the Red and Whites look disjointed and Masopust might change that. But he would have to be given a chance.

Despite a poor opening game from both players and coaches, Slavia have everything in their hands. They are strong at home and, thanks to a great deal of luck, they came away from Poland with only a one-goal loss.

However, changes will be needed, or more precisely, changes that will add experience to the overall team. Ibrahim Traoré and Lingre will definitely be in the starting lineup, then in cooperation with Petr Ševčík and possibly a healed Lukas Provod could work.

Source:: SK Slavia Praha