Lions fall to first league loss

With the international break over, FC Copenhagen had to pass the weekend watching the Superliga in anticipation of their first Monday night fixture of the season against AC Horsens. Head coach Roland Nilsson named a full-strength squad for the clash, in a game FCK needed to win to retain their eight-point lead at the top of the table.

by Joe Short

The team started as though they hadn’t been away, passing confidently and forcing the home side to sit in their own third. It took eight minutes for the first reasonable chance to occur, Claudemir launching a long throw into the box, for Sölvi Ottesen to meet unmarked but glance wide.

A minute later and César Santin was ruled offside as he slammed a loose ball into an empty net. Christian Bolaños had found space down the right wing and cut the ball back to Dame N’Doye on the edge of the area. The striker shot first time, only to see Søren Jochumsen bundle it into Santin’s path, but by this point the linesman’s flag was up.

Following the chance Horsens fell further back, preventing FCK from penetrating their opponent’s midfield. Martin Spelmann shot wide to scare Johan Wiland in the Copenhagen goal, before Christian Grindheim set N’Doye through at the other end. N’Doye took his chance early outside the box, but failed to hit the target.

Horsens draw first blood

He would come rue his missed effort on 38 minutes when Horsens took the lead. A quick ball from the Horsens right wing bobbled past Henrik Toft into the path of Jeppe Mehl, who struck neatly on the half volley to leave Wiland stretching for air and put the home side 1-0 up.

The goal startled both teams, and it took time for the pace of the game to pick up again. Three minutes before half time Santin almost broke through the Horsens defence, before Thomas Delaney shot left-footed wide of Jochumsen’s far post to condemn FCK to a one-goal half time deficit.

The second half started brightly for FCK, with N’Doye and Delaney both coming close in the opening stages. Just before the hour mark N’Doye stretched to meet a Delaney cross from the left, but couldn’t wrap his foot around the ball, which hit the side netting.

Copenhagen search for an equaliser

Bolaños then nonchalantly volleyed over the bar as Copenhagen searched harder for a leveller. At the other end, Gilberto Macena ran onto a loose ball that had bounced over Pierre Bengtsson, but his shot failed to threaten Wiland.

With 20 minutes remaining Johan Absalonsen entered the field to add forward power. Santin shot wide shortly afterwards, but FCK were finding it difficult to force any real opportunities from all their possession. In the closing stages Claudemir sent a weak effort straight at Jochumsen, and then fired over the bar.

This would be FCK’s last attacking action, as Horsens striker Macena sealed all three points when he picked up a long ball, span past Ragnar Sigurdsson, rounded Wiland and tapped into an empty net for a 2-0 home win.

AC HORSENS: 2 FC COPENHAGEN: 0

AC Horsens: Jochumsen, Nøhr, Lodberg, Rasmussen, Kortegaard, Kryger, Spelmann, Retov, Mehl, Toft, Macena.

FC Copenhagen: Wiland (C), Jacobsen, Ottesen, Sigurdsson, Bengtsson, Claudemir, Grindheim, Bolaños, Delaney, Santin, N’Doye.

Goals: Jeppe Mehl, AC Horsens (38’), Gilberto Macena, AC Horsens (90’).

Referee: Claus Bo Larsen.