OTP Bank Liga: Frontrunners win again

Budapest Honvéd 0-1 MOL Fehérvár

Goalscorer: Hodžić (82’)

Honvéd: Tujvel – Batik, Kamber, Lovrić – Uzoma, Kesztyűs, Nagy G., Banó-Szabó (Vadócz, 56’), Aliji (Kukoč, 85’) – Ben-Hatira (Cipf, 85’), Moutari
Fehérvár: Kovácsik – Nego, Juhász R., Musliu, Hangya – Hadžić (Futács, 61’), Elek – Huszti, Kovács I. (Milanov, 75’), Petriak – Hodžić (Nikolov, 89’)

Fehérvár continued their 100% start to the season as they defeated Honvéd 1-0 courtesy of a late Armin Hodžić strike in a tight encounter at the Új Hidegkuti Stadion.

Honvéd started brightly, Amadou Moutari having an effort blocked and Änis Ben-Hatira testing Ádám Kovácsik early on. At the other end, a Szabolcs Huszti free kick had former Fehérvár goalkeeper Tomáš Tujvel scrambling across his goal to save. Bence Banó-Szabó forced Kovácsik into action again just after the half-hour mark but the match remained goalless at half-time.

Ivan Petriak tested Tujvel as Fehérvár took the initiative in the second half. The winning goal came in the 82nd minute, Loïc Nego playing in Georgi Milanov, his cross being dummied by Márkó Futács for Hodžić to sweep the ball home from twelve yards for his sixth of the season. Fehérvár then withstood late Honvéd pressure to hold on for all three points, Bence Batik twice coming close to equalising in time-added-on as he hit the post with a close-range effort and then saw Kovácsik sprawling to tip over his looping header. Fehérvár continue to lead the table, with eighteen points from six matches, whilst hosts Honvéd are second bottom with three.

Kisvárda 1-2 Mezőkövesd

Goalscorers: KIS: Tischler (48’); MEZ: Zivzivadze (12’, 63’)

Kisvárda: Felipe – Melnyk (Hey, 84’), Kravchenko, Ene, Protić – Tsoukalas, Lucas – Sassá (Tischler, 46’), Karasyuk (Bumba, 71’) Kovácsréti – Grozav
Mezőkövesd: Szappanos – Eperjesi, Pillár, Nesterov, Silye (Vadnai, 54’) – Cseri (Takács T., 88’), Berecz, Karnitsky, Vajda S. – Zivzivadze, Nagy D. (Bertus, 46’)

Mezőkövesd continued their bright start to the season with their fifth victory in six matches as they defeated Kisvárda 2-1 courtesy of a brace from new Georgian signing Budu Zivzivadze. Attila Kuttor’s side took the lead in the 12th minute, Zivzivadze drilling home following a well-oiled corner routine, Tamás Cseri finding his striker with a measured, low pass.

Both sides were reduced to ten men as the players left the field for half-time, Alyaksandr Karnitsky and Stavros Tsoukalas receiving their marching orders following in incident in the tunnel as tempers boiled over.

Kisvárda brought on Patrik Tischler at the break, and his diving header brought the home side level just three minutes after the restart. Zivzivadze, though, struck again fifteen minutes later with what proved to be the winning goal. The Georgian could have had a hat-trick but for Felipe’s save in the 71th minute, whilst at the other end Tischler came close to equalising a second time as his header came off the crossbar, but 2-1 it finished, with Mezőkövesd three pointe behind leaders Fehérvár and Kisvárda sixth with nine points.

Újpest 3-2 Debrecen

Goalscorers: ÚJP: Koszta (75’), Feczesin (87’, 93’ pen); DEB: Garba (22’), Adeniji (85’)

Újpest: Banai – Pauljević, Heris, Ristevski, Bureković – Sanković, Onovo (Koszta, 69’) – Simon K. (Bjarnason, 591), Rácz (Perošević, 59.), Nwobodo – Feczesin
Debrecen: Nagy S. – Kusnyír, Szatmári Cs., Pávkovics, Ferenczi J. – Haris – Varga K., Tőzsér, Trujić (Csősz, 70.) – Szécsi, Garba (Adeniji, 61’)

Újpest came out on top of a topsy-turvy match at the Illovszky Rudolf Stadion against Debrecen, coming from behind to draw level, only for Debrecen to retake the lead in the 85th minute, before two late Róbert Feczesin strikes – the second from the penalty spot – brought Nebojša Vignević’s side an unlikely three points.

Haruna Garba gave Debrecen the lead in the 22nd minute after Dženan Bureković and Jonathan Heris had come close for the Lilák, the Nigerian turning his marker in the box and firing past Dávid Banai from fifteen yards. Sándor Nagy then saved a fierce Bureković effort to ensure the visitors went in ahead at the break.

Újpest equalised in the 75th minute, substitute Márk Koszta stooping to head home a teasing Bureković cross, but when fellow substitute Tunde Adeniji put Debrecen ahead with a firm twenty-yard drive and only five minutes to go, things appeared bleak for the hosts. Feczesin though, had other ideas, blasting home to make it 2-2 just two minutes later, and then when Ákos Kinyik was adjudged to have fouled Koszta in the box in injury time, stepping up to send Nagy the wrong way from the spot to give Újpest all three points.

Paks 0-4 Ferencváros

Goalscorers: Zubkov (33’), Nguen (36’), Varga (45’ pen, 83’)

Ferencváros warmed up for their UEFA Europa League match away to Espanyol on Thursday with a comfortable 4-0 victory against Paks. It took Sergii Rebrov’s side until the 33rd minute to break the deadlock, Oleksandr Zubkov firing low, right-footed past Ádám Holczer after being set up by Tokmac Nguen. Nguen got the second three minutes later, pouncing on some slack defending by Zsolt Gévay to seize possession, nip past Holczer and roll the ball into an empty net. Roland Varga made it three just before the break, dispatching a penalty after Endre Botka had been felled in the box by János Szabo.

Gévay's and Paks’ misery was compounded in the 73rd minute when the defender was sent off for a rash challenge on Franck Boli, Roland Varga completing the scoring in the 83rd minute with a direct free kick as Ferencváros cantered to a 4-0 victory which sees them rise to fifth place and with two games in hand, the first of which they play next Sunday at newly-promoted Zalaegerszeg.

Puskás Akadémia 2-0 Kaposvár

Goalscorer: Vaněček (47’, 49’)

Puskás Akadémia: Hegedüs L. – Szolnoki (Sandler, 46’), Meissner, Hadzhiev, Nagy Zs. – Urblík, Van Nieff – Sós, Knežević (Vlasko, 82’), Gyurcsó (Kiss T., 74’) – Vaněček
Kaposvár: Pogacsics – Vachtler, Hegedűs D., Nagy T., Fodor M. – Szakály A., Nagy J. (Nagy K., 55’) – Nagy R. (Poplatnik, 51’), Beliczky, Csiki (Borbély, 79’) – Ádám

Puskás Akadémia are up to third following a 2-0 victory over Kaposvár at the Pancho Aréna, both goals coming from David Vaněček early in the second half.

There was little in the way of goalmouth action in the first half save for a deflected long-range Roland Szolnoki effort which Krisztián Pogacsics did well to tip over. Kaposvár squander a gilt-edged opportunity to take the lead just after the break though, when Gergő Beliczky missing the target from four yards after being teed-up by Norbert Csiki.

Seconds later they were behind, Vaněček stabbing home a Bence Sós cross from the left, and the match was all but decided two minutes later, this time Vaněček sweeping an Ádám Gyurcsó cross from the right past the helpless Pogacsics. The result sees Puskás Akadémia on ten points from six matches, whilst Kaposvár are bottom of the table with three.

Diósgyőr 1-0 Zalaegerszeg

Goalscorer: Brković (38’)

Diósgyőr: Danilovic – Polgár, Brković, Karan, Tamás M. – Márkvárt, Iszlai – Korbély (Bacsa, 82.), Hasani, Prosser (Shestakov, 79.) – Rui Pedro (Szabó B., 75.)
Zalaegerszeg: Demjén – Bolla, Lesjak, Devecseri, Tamás K. – Kocsis, Mitrovic (Bobál G., 46’), Bedi – Barczi (Hudák, 69’), Radó, Stieber (Bobál D., 67’)

Tamás Feczkó got off to a great start as Diósgyőr head coach as Dušan Brković scored the only goal of the game against Zalaegerszeg in Miskolc to hand him his first win. Rui Pedro tested Patrik Demjén in the Zalaegerszeg goal at one end and Zoltán Stieber did the same with Branislav Danilović at the other before Serbian central defender Brković bundled the ball over the line from close range in the 38th minute following a corner on the right.

Zalaegerszeg were reduced to ten men in the 66th minute after captain Szilárd Devecseri was shown a second yellow card, but they continued to press for an equaliser until their fate was sealed in the 89th minute, another dismissal via two bookings for Gergő Kocsis meaning they were reduced to nine men. Diósgyőr rise to ninth place, overtaking Zalaegerszeg in tenth, with both teams on six points.