Draw with Malmö. Goals by Chorý and Schranz
The Red-Whites finished 30th in the league phase of the UEL with five points, while 24 clubs advanced to the knockout stage.
The starting lineup saw four changes compared to the match against PAOK. In defense, Igoh Ogbu was replaced by Tomas Holes, who also wore the captains armband. The midfield was strengthened by Simion Michez and Ondrej Zmrzly, while Daniel Fila partnered Mojmir Chytil up front.
Fila took the first shot of the game in the 7th minute, missing the right post with his left foot. Slavia threatened from a corner kick, but the deflected ball was collected in the air by Friedrich. After a swift counterattack, Michez struck the crossbar. The main referee then reviewed a previous situation in Slavia's penalty area via VAR, detected a handball by David Zima, and awarded a penalty.
The score remained unchanged, as Mandous pulled off an outstanding save, reading the direction and stopping Botheim's penalty! Malmo's goalkeeper denied Zmrzly's effort, while Mandous tipped Bolin's shot wide with his fingertips and denied Fila's golden chance. Both goalkeepers dominated the first half-hour, with Mandous also helped twice by the post, though the assistant referee had signaled offside.
A massive scramble in stoppage time ended with the ball in the visitors net, but the assistant referee ruled out Lingr's goal for offside. Both teams headed into the break goalless despite several big chances.
Trpisovsky's men started the second half brilliantly, taking the lead through a combination of substitutes Christos Zafeiris set up Tomas Chory, who found the net just 30 seconds after coming on - 1:0. Holes fired a powerful shot over the bar, and Ali's attempt was safely handled by Mandous in the center of the goal. Half an hour remained in the match.
In the 65th minute, Ivan Schranz replaced Michez, and Malick Diouf narrowly missed the right post from a free kick. Schranz's shot lacked power, and Friedrich had no trouble saving it. In the 69th minute, Malmo equalized thanks to Ali's precise strike - 1:1. Two minutes later, the Swedish champions completed the turnaround, with Bolin finding the net - 1:2. Mandous denied a third goal, winning a one-on-one against Botheim.
In the 76th minute, Slavia equalized again - Schranz connected beautifully with Diouf's cross, finishing with his left foot - 2:2. By then, Stepan Chaloupek had come on for Konecny. Five minutes before the end, Lingr had a chance to complete the comeback but narrowly missed the top corner. Chaloupek, also heading the ball, couldn't find the target either.
In four minutes of stoppage time, Friedrich punched away Diouf's long-range strike, and Slavia's final group-stage match of the UEL ended in a 2-2 draw.
Jindrich Trpisovsky's team will be back in action on Sunday, facing Mlada Boleslav at Eden in the first spring round at 18:30. Tickets for the match are on sale now.
Lineups
Mandous – Holeš, Zima, Koneèný (76. Chaloupek) – Michez (66. Schranz), Oscar (46. Chorý), Pech, Lingr, Zmrzlý (46. Diouf) – Chytil (46. Zafeiris), Fila
Friedrich – Skogmar, Rösler, Zätterström, Busanello – Johnsen, Rosengren – Bolin (89. Olsson), Berg (64. Loukili), Ali – Botheim (82. Lewicki)