Hot opening clash of the season at Ljudski vrt: Five goals, two penalties, and a debut for a 17-year-old in the Maribor shirt
Photo: Žan Pak
The players of Maribor did not have much time to dwell on their exit from the Europa League qualifiers, as they were already facing the start of the new season of the Prva liga Telemach against Domžale today. The visitors arrived at Ljudski vrt hoping for a better season compared to last year’s results, where they struggled for a long time even for survival. The purple team saw several squad changes compared to Thursday’s match. Instead of Lana Vidmar, Bradley M’Bondo started in the defensive line, making his debut for the 16-time Slovenian champions, while Marko Božić and young Niko Grlić were also on the field from the first minute.
The 17-year-old, who had already made his debut in the return match against Botev, presented himself in the best possible way on the home stage. In the 7th minute of the match, Ajdin Mulalić mishandled the ball on the edge of his own penalty area, which Grlić capitalized on, sending the ball into the empty net from a difficult position.
Five minutes later, the yellow family had a dream opportunity to quickly get back into the game, after a truly clumsy intervention in the home penalty area by debutant M’Bondo who handled the ball. Fortunately for the 22-year-old Frenchman, Danijel Šturm missed the entire goal during the penalty kick.
Maribor’s penalty came in the 26th minute when the ball fell to the best purple scorer from last season. Arnel Jakupović expertly defeated his former teammate and ensured an increase in the lead.
Things started to get a bit tangled in the second half when referees ruled several borderline situations in favor of the visitors. First, a stunning goal by Marko Božić from the edge of the penalty area was disallowed due to a supposed foul by Žiga Repas in the midfield. Then, in the 83rd minute, a second penalty for Domžale followed, which will leave quite a few controversies. The opportunity was successfully utilized by substitute Mario Krstovski.
In their desire to equalize, the visitors launched an offensive that turned into a disaster. First, in stoppage time, after a run and cross by Behar Feta, Jakupović scored with a header from close range, prompting the referees to check if the goal was legitimate based on previous decisions. Moments later, Maks Barišić further dispelled any doubts about the winner with a goal, which was much needed after a modest performance.
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This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
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1. SNL
Domžale
Maribor
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