Victory not enough for FCK title

24/05 2012 08:26

FC Copenhagen went into the final game of the Superliga season knowing a win was crucial if they were to claim their fourth league title in four years. While FCK faced Silkeborg IF in PARKEN, top-of-the-table FC Nordsjælland were entertaining AC Horsens. If FCN lost and FCK won, Carsten V. Jensen’s side would be champions.

by Joe Short

Club captain Mathis Zanka was back in the heart of the Copenhagen defence alongside Kris Stadsgaard. Meanwhile, Bryan Oviedo moved to left-back behind Martin Vingaard, with Mos Abdellaoue joining Dame N’Doye up front.

The task for FCK was simple: win. But they almost went a goal down within three minutes when Sebastian Svård beat the offside trap to clip a low cross towards goal that Johan Wiland tipped onto the crossbar, and luckily out to safety. Moments later and Wiland got down well to palm Marvin Pourié’s drive away from the bottom-left corner of the net.

The Lions’ first half chance came after eight minutes, Lars Jacobsen bypassing the midfield to shoot just wide from the edge of the area. Christian Bolaños then cut in from the right wing but his shot deflected into Lasse Heinze’s hands. Yet Copenhagen did take the lead on 18 minutes when Abdellaoue slipped free of Jesper Mikkelsen to latch onto Vingaard’s throughball and finish through Heinze’s legs. 1-0 FCK, with Nordsjælland and Horsens still goalless.

Hope of championship

A tongue-in-cheek chant of “Vi ligger nummer 1” echoed around PARKEN after the goal, and Copenhagen almost doubled their lead with a wonderful counter attack five minutes before half time. N’Doye broke free and played left to Vingaard. The winger returned the pass to N’Doye on the edge of the Silkeborg box, before Bolaños picked it up on the right. He tried to find the diagonal run of Abdellaoue across the face of goal, but Mikkelsen stuck a vital leg out to clear.

The news that Nordsjælland had taken a 1-0 lead filtered through at half time, but it was not going to stops CV’s side giving their all. Five minutes into the second half N’Doye found himself free on the edge of the Silkeborg box but he blasted over the bar; while at the other end Jesper Bech played in Christian Holst, Zanka on hand to nick the ball away at the death.

A second goal came so close when Vingaard thundered a free kick off the woodwork, but on 61 it finally arrived. A simple towering N’Doye header rounded off a perfect Oviedo corner to secure the Senegalese’s 18th goal of the Superliga campaign – once again the top scorer in Denmark.

Copenhagen come so close

Abdellaoue almost made it three a moment later, but the Norwegian couldn’t jump high enough to reach Bolaños’ right-wing cross. Silkeborg weren’t going to go down without a fight however, and on 69 minutes halved the deficit when Pourié tapped in from close range following Holst’s headed set-up.

The remainder of the game saw Silkeborg in control, looking to push for an equaliser. But none ever came, and when news from Farum filtered through that Nordsjælland had taken a 2-0 lead, there was nothing anyone in PARKEN could do but keep their heads high and see out a win on the day.

Oviedo hit the woodwork in stoppage time as the game petered out, Nordsjælland eventually winning 3-0 to better FCK’s 2-1 result. So, after three years of lifting the Superliga title, Copenhagen are no longer champions of Denmark. That accolade goes to a fantastic Nordsjælland side who qualify for the group stages of the UEFA Champions League. As for Copenhagen, an exciting qualification campaign awaits us if we are to represent Denmark on Europe’s biggest stage once more next season.

FC COPENHAGEN: 2 SILKEBORG IF: 1

FC Copenhagen: Wiland, Jacobsen, Stadsgaard, Zanka (C), Oviedo, Bolaños, Claudemir, Grindheim, Vingaard, Abdellaoue, N’Doye.

Silkeborg IF: Heinze, Pedersen, Jakobsen, Mikkelsen, Ritter, Svensson, Risgård, Hansen, Holst, Bech, Pourié.

Goals: Abdellaoue (18’), N’Doye (61’), Pourié, Silkeborg IF (69’).

Referee: Anders Hermansen.