2023-08-23 21:02:01
Football
Young Boys in a favorable position to regain the Champions League
Match closed between the Bernese and Maccabi Haifa, Wednesday in the Champions League play-off. The 0-0 final is the business of YB, who will have to make the difference in front of his public on Tuesday.
PostedAugust 23, 2023, 11:02 PM
Joël Monteiro (left) takes the best in his duel with Daniel Sundgren.
Freshfocus
Young Boys is in its transition times. The Bernese club got what they were looking for in Israel on Wednesday: a 0-0 which opens up interesting prospects for the comeback. It is next Tuesday, after 90 or 120 minutes of play, in a Wankdorf which is likely to be full, that we will know if YB will play in the group stage of the Champions League this fall.
Because we were talking about a relatively unknown opponent, a duel going away, a match with huge stakes, a question was on Bernese lips before doing battle with Maccabi Haifa: what would be a good result this Wednesday evening? YB’s answer became ever clearer as the minutes passed. A victory was not at the heart of his concerns. On the other hand, he had not planned to concede a single goal.
This does not mean that the club from the capital had no offensive project in Israel. The slowness of the opposing central hinge had been spotted and the speed of Meschack Elia was expected to open some doors for the reigning Super League champion. The idea is rarely transcribed into the reality of a particularly closed match. The millions promised to the team that will join the group stage oblige.
The satisfaction Benedict
It is therefore the defense of Young Boys that had to be scrutinized. And this one removed all the doubts surrounding it. In particular those who hovered over the head of Loris Benito, aligned exceptionally in the axis and not far from being irreproachable (as well as his neighbor Mohamed Ali Camara) in this role. At the end of anticipating, Raphaël Wichy had offered him the 90 minutes of the Swiss Cup match against Breitenrain on Friday to get into the position. Paid choice.
A free kick from Kastriot Imeri, a mule strike from Filip Ugrinic and a few messy situations: that’s what the Bernese attacking sector had to get their teeth into on Wednesday. Roughly the same number of chances as Maccabi Haifa. As expected, the decision will be forced on the return.
Maccabi Haïfa – Young Boys 0-0
Sammy-Ofer Stadium, Haifa.
Arbitrator: Davide Massa (ITA).
Haifa: nitzan; Sundgren, Seck, Goldberg, Cornud; Mohamed, Haziza (79e David), Jaber, Chery (88e Refaelov); Wise (72e Khalaili), Pierrot. Entertainer: Messay Dego.
YB: Racioppi; Janko, Benito, Camara, Persson; Lauper (69e Chaiwa), Ugrinic, Imeri (60e Monteiro), Rieder; Itten (69e Nsamé), Elia (88e Ganvoula). Coach: Raphaël Wicky.
Warnings: Rieder (40e), Imeri (45e+2), Cornud (50e), Chery (63e), Sundgren (71e), Mohamed (74e), Monteiro (83e).
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