The game of the 5th round of the Tonybet Virsliiga brought the Grobiņa SC/LFS team to the Valmiera Olympic Center stadium. The debutant of this season almost won a historic first victory in the top league after a quick goal, but Kristers Alekseiciks did not allow it. At the end of the game, a tie was settled – 1:1.
The pace of the beginning of the game was quite powerful, so in the slow start, we had to fall on our stomachs. In the second minute of the game, the first yellow card was given to Carlos Duke, but seven minutes later, Maksims Fjodorovs, the representative of the Kurzeme team, stood out with a productive shot. After this goal, an uncompromising chase began – in the style of the best thrillers.
Control of the ball in the hands of Valmiera FC, followed by formation of attacks, mostly trying to break through the opponent’s fortress using the middle of the field. Six shots, but only one of them was on target. It was the best chance for Gustavo Silva, who beat everyone but the MVP of the game – goalpost – from the border of the penalty area.
In the second half, the dominance of the home team was even more pronounced, the variety of attacks, and opportunities to equalize, however, the goalpost for both Leo Gaucho and Djibril Gueye, as well as Meissa Diop, who came on as a substitute, could not find the goal frame. The tempo of the game dropped as the duel struggled due to multiple rule violations, yellow cards were flying in the faces of the players of one team and the other.
When the additional time of the game came, Jurgis Kalns decided to go all out, sending Alekseiciks from the defense to attack, he received the ball in front of the goal in the 5th minute of the compensatory time and finally beat Nikita Pincuks. In one of the last attacks, there were variations in the attacking option. Still, the substitute Jason Bahamboula chose to shoot the ball himself, trying to steal the tie, which was lit on the scoreboard – unsuccessfully. The game ended in a draw.
We will play our next game on Sunday (14.04), when Pape Jare Fall, Fraj Kairmani, Luka Silagadze, and the FK Liepaja team will visit Valmiera.
