Nordstrand puts FCK top in Europe

15/09 2011 23:20

FC Copenhagen began another European group stage campaign on Thursday night with a home tie to Ukrainian side FC Vorskla Poltava. PARKEN was ready for the UEFA Europa League clash, as was a strong FCK line up.

by Joe Short

Head coach Roland Nilsson was forced to change his defence after captain Mathias Zanka injured himself at the weekend. Sölvi Ottesen and Ragnar Sigurdsson partnered in the middle therefore, while Thomas Delaney was handed a left wing spot and Morten Nordstrand the second striker position.

The home team opened the better and dominated the first 20 minutes, but the only real chance came when Christian Bolaños played a low ball across goal, but Dame N’Doye stretched too early at the opportunity. He beat goalkeeper Serhiy Dolganskiy, but his flick only found the side netting.

From then on the Lions lost their momentum, and the Ukrainians began to assert themselves on the game, with almost every attack being launched on the left wing. The closest Vorskla came was a shot by Ahmed Januzi, but he sent the ball yards off target.

Nordstrand slots home spot kick

Nilsson used the half time break to sort his team out and FCK came back for the second half much more focussed. Bolaños looked dangerous on the wing, and broke free early on after quick footwork nutmegged his opponent to bring him clear. A one-two with Nordstrand outside the box was too adventurous however, and the attack was intercepted.

Copenhagen wouldn’t have to wait too much longer for a goal however, as neat link up play between Johnny Thomas and Bolaños saw the full back brought down by Oleksiy Kurilov. The referee awarded the penalty, and Nordstrand took up the duty of finishing the chance to give Copenhagen a 1-0 lead.

Wiland maintains clean sheet

Vorskla wasted no time in looking for an equaliser however, and almost drew level when Januzi broke through after Sigurdsson lost his footing. However, the Icelander regained his balance and managed to poke the ball away from under the Ukrainian’s feet, Januzi primed to shoot.

After the scare, the Lions controlled the remainder of the game. While Vorskla admittedly had a lot of the ball, they were unable to penetrate a sturdy FCK defence. The only real threat in the final stages came thanks to a Copenhagen mistake, when Ottesen hit Sigurdsson during a clearance, but Johan Wiland was on hand to pounce on the loose ball.

While the last ten minutes offered little in entertainment, Copenhagen came out on top as Bulgarian referee Stanislav Todorov brought proceedings to a close. With Hannover 96 and Standard Liege battling out a 0-0 draw in Germany, Copenhagen are top of group B after one game.

FC COPENHAGEN: 1 FC VORSKLA POLTAVA: 0

FC Copenhagen: Wiland (C), Thomsen, Sigurdsson, Ottesen, Bengtsson, Kristensen, Grindheim, Bolaños, Delaney, Nordstrand, N’Doye.

FC Vorskla Poltava: Dolganskiy (C), Matveyev, Dallku, Selin, Kurilov, Krasnopyorov, Chesnakov, Rebenok, Kryvosheyenko, Bezus, Januzi.

Goals: Santin (54’, pen.).

Referee: Stanislav Todorov (BUL).