Are Plzeň’s performances a disgrace? West Bohemians can overcome negative record

When Viktoria Plzeň made it to the Champions League group stage, it was a great success for Czech football. The last time Slavia did it was in the 2019/20 season, while the West Bohemians have not appeared in the most prestigious football competition since the 2013/14 season.

The reigning Fortuna Liga champion has successively defeated Helsinki, Tiraspol and Karabakh in the Champions League preliminary rounds. Advancing to the group stage was a huge achievement, and it was a significant financial injection.

The six-time Czech champion was drawn into the “group of death” together with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. Promotion was therefore perhaps not to be expected, but at the same time, neither were the results so dire.

The tour started with a match at the Camp Nou, where they lost to Barcelona 1:5. This was followed by a game at the Doosan Arena, which Inter Milan won 2:0 after goals from Džeko and Dumfries.

After the national break came a trip to Munich, where Michal Bílek’s team left with a 0:5 advantage. The rematch with the German opponent was a bit more acceptable, but even a score of 2::4 is not quite optimal.

On Wednesday, Viktoria Plzeň played at the San Siro, where they scored four goals in front of more than 70,000 spectators, while not once overcoming the opponent’s defence. They are currently in last place in Group C with a negative 3:20 record.

In addition, next week they will play their last match against Barcelona. If the current Fortuna Liga leader loses by at least three goals, it would break Dinamo Zagreb’s negative record from the 2011/2012 season.

The Croatian side finished the group stage with a negative score of 3:22, but had more acceptable opponents than Plzen. In the group stage, they faced Real Madrid, Lyon and Ajax Amsterdam.

Although this would have been a negative entry in the history of the millionaire competition, it would not have been such a shame given the level of the opponents.

This is evidenced, among others, by Rangers, which currently has a 1:19 record in a group with Liverpool, Napoli and Ajax and is also in danger of “breaking” the negative record.

Source: UEFA