St. Gallen survives the craziest football game of the year
FC St. Gallen appears to be the sure winner in the Conference League duel with Slask Breslau after 21 minutes. However, wild minutes cause the game to completely turn before halftime. Afterwards, it becomes really turbulent and extremely heated.
In the local league, you might see such games more often, but in professional football? Not so much. Swiss club FC St. Gallen survives an extremely turbulent evening in the 3rd round of the Conference League against Polish club Slask Breslau. After a match with 24 minutes of extra time, three red cards, and VAR in constant use, the score stands at 3:2. The tabloid "Blick" is amazed by one of the "craziest games in the European Cup".
The signs were good for the Swiss. They went into the second leg with a 2:0 lead from the first leg and took an early lead. In the 21st minute, Bastien Toma scored the 1:0, making the lead very comfortable for St. Gallen. The Poles had scored earlier, but VAR disallowed the goal. Breslau captain Alex Petkov had interfered with goalkeeper Lawrence Ati Zigi.
Six catastrophic minutes for St. Gallen
Before halftime, the game takes an unexpected turn. In six minutes, the Poles score three goals. Petr Schwarz opens with a bizarre rolling goal (41.), then Piotr Samiec-Talar scores with a wonderful curl (43.), and Petkov (45.+2) makes it three. The game is suddenly level. Since the away goals rule no longer applies, everything is open again.
But the turbulence is far from over. In the second half, there is a racist incident. Goalkeeper Ati Zigi complains repeatedly about monkey noises directed at him. The referee indicates that the match will be abandoned if there are more incidents. A fan suspected of making the noises is eventually escorted out of the stadium.
Next up: Petkov falls in the penalty area (76.), the referee awards a penalty. However, after VAR intervention, he changes his decision to a dive, shows Petkov a second yellow card, and sends him off. "Blick" is puzzled. In their analysis, they say: "But to warn Petkov a second time for a supposed dive is completely out of place, indeed wrong. Because the captain of the Poles is clearly fouled by Stevanovic."
Penalty in the 108th minute is retaken
The same fate befalls teammate Matias Nahuel in the 11th minute of extra time. He had the ball at his hand from close range. The video review takes five minutes before a penalty is awarded. Christian Witzig steps up - and misses. But VAR intervenes again. Polish goalkeeper Rafal Leszczynski had moved off the line too early. The penalty is retaken. This time, Willem Geubbels scores. He makes it 2:3 for the Swiss, making it 4:3, and St. Gallen celebrates.
But the game is not over yet. Arnau Oritz sees a yellow card in the 22nd minute of extra time, followed by a direct red for dissent. Two minutes later, it's finally over. In the next round, the team of former Augsburg and BVB II coach Enrico Maaßen will face Trabzonspor.
Despite the initial lead, Poland's Slask Breslau valiantly fought back in the Conference League match against FC St. Gallen. Following a tumultuous period before halftime, Slask managed to score three consecutive goals against the Swiss team, with Alex Petkov contributing one of them.
The second half of the game was no less turbulent, as St. Gallen's goalkeeper Lawrence Ati Zigi faced racist insults from the crowd. The referee threatened to abandon the match if such incidents persisted, ultimately leading to the expulsion of a fan suspected of making the monkey noises.
