Match Report

A late summer evening in a city as beautiful, stunning and picturesque as Prague is as near as heaven as you can get; at least in Eastern Europe.  In a footballing city with famous names such as Bohemians, Dukla, Viktoria, Sparta and Slavia the round ball game of football plays a large role in the life of Prague inhabitants.  The choice for football fans in Prague is wide and varied with four Prague sides playing each week in the Czech top league, the 16 team Gambrinus Liga.  Viktoria Zizkov, possibly the most centrally located Prague located side just a short hop from the main Prague Hlavni Nadradzi train station, now play games in the 2. liga or Druhá liga the second highest football league in the Czech Republic.  Dukla Prague meanwhile has arisen from the ashes of its merger with 1.FK Příbram and now exists again as Dukla Prague.  In the same colours of years of old they now play again in the second division at the historical multi use Na Julisce stadia in the north west of the city.

Czech participation and success in UEFA European competition has been far from consistent and the country still awaits its first winners of a club tournament.  Possibly the most successful have been Sparta Prague who are now recognised as the biggest club in the country and have won the domestic championship more than any other side.  Reaching the group stages has been a regular occurrence both in the UEFA and Champions League but progression to the later stages has been something that Sparta have as yet never achieved.  Despite this qualification for the Champions League group stages has not been beyond Sparta and qualification again had looked quite positive for the 2009-2010 season.  After a first leg match at the Letna stadion in Prague, Sparta held a 3-1 lead in the new Platini inspired Non-Champions path Third qualifying round tie.  However, in the second leg Panathinikos demolished Sparta 3-0 and a UEFA Europa League play off match against NK Maribor is all that Sparta has left.

Step forward one evening to a Wednesday night and it’s the opportunity for teams from UEFA’s Champions Path to fight it out for a place in the play off round.   After the first leg in Moldova things could not have been closer for Czech champions Slavia Prague and Moldovan opponents Sheriff with the game ending 0-0 in Tiraspol.  FC Sheriff Tiraspol is the dominant team in Moldovan football despite a history that goes back less than 12 years to 1997.  Since 2001 the club have dominated Moldovan football winning all the championship titles in the Divizia Nationala championship.  The club have the best players and the most modern facilities including a new stadium.  The team has complemented national championship success with winning the Moldavian Cup six times.

Where things get slightly complex is that Sheriff play home game in the city of Tiraspol alongside near rivals FC Tiraspol.  Tiraspol is the capital of the disputed territory of Transnistria.   Decoding the history of the ‘Sheriff’ part of the club name is not too difficult a task with Sheriff recognised as possibly the largest company based in the Transnistria region.  The company had been formed in the early 1990's by Viktor Gushan and Ilya Kazmaly, former members of the Moldovan special services.   Since its foundation Sheriff as an organisation has grown to include nearly all forms of profitable private business in what is a small nation and has become significantly involved in Transnistrian politics.  

Many residents of the region and neighbouring Ukrainian areas contend that the company is truly run by Igor Smirnov the self styled president of the disputed republic of Transnistria.  Accusation have also been made that the company is run in a mafia style manner with accusations that financial irregularities across aspects of the Sheriff brand.  One accusation is of money being laundered across the various business areas of Sheriff. 

The chain of business interests of Sheriff are widespread from petrol stations, media TV channels, advertising agencies, publishing houses and of course FC Sheriff Tiraspol. The Sheriff Stadium is home to FC Sheriff Tiraspol and is also owned by the Sheriff Corporation. Created at a cost of $200 million it is the only football stadium in the region which is eligible for international events, which means that teams from both Moldova and Transnistria can use it to play their international home matches.

Fc Sheriff are linked to the whole area of Transnitria through the sheer size and influence of Sheriff.  In Tiraspol the Sheriff stadia occupies a territory of more than forty hectares and consists of the main playing field plus five other fields.  In addition the complex includes training pitches, a covered indoor arena for winter use as well as a soccer school for children and on-site residences for the players of FC Sheriff.   A five star luxury hotel is under also construction. 

Where things have become complicated is that transnistrian governmental policies have isolated the region from the rest of Moldova, allowing Sheriff to forge a monopoly in the region.  This has ultimately led to a time of co-operation between the government of Igor Smirnov and Sheriff hence the accusations that Smirnov actually runs the company. The company has continually supported government policy and in return, the customs service, headed by the president's son, Vladimir Smirnov have given Sheriff a reduction on taxes and import duties. FC Sheriff meanwhile are seen as a figurehead for the Transnistrian region abroad with many fans waving flags of the region instead of Moldovan flags at games.

Transnistria has an indeterminate status and far from helping the growth of the club this political instability has slowed its progress and the exposure of the newer Tiraspol stadium to the wider confines of European football.   Sheriff the company meanwhile are said to support a political party ‘Renewal’ which was formed in 2000 with the goal of independence from Moldova.   Kazmaly, co-founder of Sheriff, and the company's Human Resources Director, Ilon Tyuryaeva have both been elected to parliament as members of Renewal and have been seen regularly at FC Sheriff games.  Oleg Smirnov, another son of the Sheriff Company president is also a member of parliament.

With Sheriff using its economic clout to sway elections similar accusations have arisen about its role in FC Sheriff’s dominate role in Moldovan football.   By virtue of their ownership of a mobile phone network and of TSV, a local television station, Sheriff has been able to control communications for the incoming Renewal party.   This has seen many politicians accuse Sheriff of trying to launch a coup d’état in Moldova with the aim of integrating Transnistria and Moldova through an identification that more profitable business conditions could be attained for the Sheriff company.  Sheriff against this has stated that its main aim is a desire for independence from Moldova.  Where Transnistria stands now officially is as a frozen conflict zone similar to other post soviet areas such as Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia.  FC Sheriff Tiraspol meanwhile are part of the little known and unsuccessful Moldovan league.

FC Sheriff have generally struggled in the European Champions League seldom getting past the second Qualification rounds with defeats in recent years to Anderlecht, Sparta Prague, Graz and Partizan Belgrade.   In an effort to take things further the club and its wealthy backers have invested in the team with a host of South American, Georgian, Serbian and African players including Brazilians Jose Nadson Ferriera and Argentinean left back Luis Antonio Rodriguez.   Progression has been tough but the chance to take the club a step further came on a warm night in Prague came against Slavia.

Historically, Slavia are one of the oldest central European clubs.  Founded as a soccer club in 1892 its formation came largely through the initiative of Czech students in Bohemia and its desire to have a literary and debating society with a sporting arm.   Slavia soon became a successful populariser of soccer in Bohemia and one of the leading teams on the European continent.  The history of Slavia Prague is closely linked with the greatest successes of the Czechoslovakian national team with eight Slavia players in the Czechoslovak national team which in 1934 reached the finals of the World Cup.

One of Slavia’s most famous players was the forward Josef Bican who scored more than five thousand goals and reached the average league ratio of 1.75 goals per a league match.   But the club has had its enemies particularly within older regimes.  Viewed with suspicion by the resident Habsburg rulers and persecuted for its intelligentsia tendencies of its fan base Slavia have always had a lot against them.   In the older Czech communist regime after the Second World War Slavia were largely persecuted by the ruling communist regime and in the 1960’s were twice relegated to the Czechoslovak second division. The club lost its name and was renamed Dynamo Slavia and forced from playing games at the Letna playing fields area to playing matches at a working class area of tower blocks, railways sidings and a cemetery.  This area was called Eden and is where the club now plays today.

Although seen and regarded as a multi-functional facility the Eden today is called the Synot Tip Arena.  It is located in the south east of the city not far from where FC Bohemians play games in Prague 10 – Vršovice. To the north the ground is delimited by the long Vladivostocká Street where trams from central Prague stop. To the south, Eden is bordered by a railway track where from the ultimate plan is to create a Slavia train stop giving fans better access to the stadium.   The club website states that the Eden is around 4.1 kilometres distant from the centre of the city at Wenceslas Square to the ground. Even on a sunny summer evening the walking to the ground was not a good idea.

In the early 1950s, Slavia then known as Dynamo Slavia, was forced to leave its stadium at the Letna playing fields and a new stadium was built at Eden in the Vrsovice district.   Its capacity then had been about 50,000 almost all for standing room only. The wooden western stand was taken from the old stadium at Letná whilst the rest of the bowl like stands were made of concrete.  With Slavia Prague now back to its original club name the 1970’s saw the club re-emerge from periods of decline.  Soon it became apparent that Eden did not provide sufficient comfort for fans or a team eager for success and planning started on building a new stadium in the same locality.

However, under the Czechoslovakian communist regime the planning of the new ground went quite slowly. Several projects were planned and created but actual construction was slow and generally every project faltered in the face of beau racy and objection.   In 1989 it was no-coincidence that the fall of the communist Cezoslovak regime was greeted with joy at Slavia games.  Soon after it was announced in 1990 that the construction of a new ground was to start.  

Thereafter though came a time of uncertainty for Slavia.  In 1989 the club moved temporarily to nearby Dolicek Stadium of Bohemians and the east stand was torn down in view of the Eden being redeveloped.  In the early 1990’s Slavia then moved to the Stadion Evzena Rosickeho ‘Strahov’ stadium  when it was announced construction of the new stadium would commence.  Again though progress was delayed and Slavia moved back to its original home. 

To replace the stand that had been torn down a temporary stand was built in the place of former eastern stand but it was clear that Eden was outdated and Slavia needed a new home ground if it was to grew again in esteem internationally and compete with the dominant Sparta in domestic competition.

Several more projects were muted but Slavia was unable to raise sufficient funds as off-field financial problems arose.  In 1994 millionaire owner Czech-American Boris Korbel left after boardroom squabbles but then in 1996 Slavia ended a almost 50 year wait by winning the championship.  Relations between club, management and supporters remained strained though as players left due to the success at Euro 1996 of the Czech national team.  Continued blue prints for a new ground continually hit legal blocks and by 2000 the Czech FA announced that the run down nature of the stadia meant that Eden was incapable of hosting Czech league football.  Slavia had no option but to move back to the unpopular Strahov stadium.

Then in October 2006 it was announced that creation of a new Eden stadium was to commence.  At last things were looking up for Slavia and the chance to challenge the dominant Sparta had arrived. With optimism at the club high Slavia then went onto win the Czech championship in 2007/2008 wrestling the league title away from experienced Sparta Prague side.   As the title was celebrated the modern Eden was progressing in construction.  Founded on solid piles made of reinforced concrete and a combination of monolithic and prefabricated structures long hoped for new base for the club was taking shape.   It had a roof made of steel placed on top which covered the arena for the audience and provided good acoustics for fans chants from the traditional severni tribuna end.

The facades of the ground were then reinforced with thermal insulation, with a trowel finished plaster. Finally it was ensured that spectators inside the stadium could get to their seats via stairs made of prefabricated elements of reinforced-concrete.   The other floors in the auditorium were made of concrete with an anti-skid epoxy coating.  VIP boxes were equipped with plasma television screens and suites interior to the ground were equipped with a glazed front walling with new media and conferencing hosting capabilities.  At last Slavia Prague had a new home to be proud of after years of uncertainty.

The reason behind the trip to the Czech Republic was not principally the Slavia Prague Champions League game; it was only through chance that the following nights Europa League action meant the opportunity to watch Slavia fell into our path.  On the Thursday night there was a Europa League match between Sigma Olomouc and Aberdeen in Moravia some 170km from Prague.  

Being that we flew into Prague that day and would not travel through to Olomouc until the Thursday morning it seemed appropriate to see some Champions League football.  As we stepped into Prague city centre on the Wednesday prior to the Slavia match it was written on the glass frontage of the window of a sports bar that both the Slovan Liberec v FC Vaduz and Sigma Olomouc v Aberdeen games would be shown live on Czech television the next evening.   And so for that matter was the Slavia game being shown live for television viewing so bearing in mind we had no tickets the chance to see the game was at least guaranteed. 

A quick consultation of the Rough Guide to European Football told us there was three ways of getting to the Eden stadia.  We chose the easiest one by taking the Green Prague metro line A to Namesti Miru just south of the main train station, the trip costing a hefty 18kc around 65p.  After that it was a short walk to the tram track nearby and tram No.22 which stopped outside the ground on Vladivostocka.  It was on tram no.22 that the first appearance of Slavia fans emerged with fans dressed from top to toe in red and white halved shirts and scarves.  Sportovní Klub Slavia Prague are also known as Sešívaní - The sewn-ones, this nickname makes reference to the fact that early red and white shirts of the club were intrically sewn together.

Slavia are a club with one of the most distinctive shirts in European club football.   The white of the shirt is said to represent fair play and the Olympic ideal whilst red symbolises the heart.  The distinctive red star meanwhile is a symbol of hope, spirit and good mind. 

Being ticket less the first point of call at the Eden was the ticket office windows at the opposite end of the stadium to the club shop but by the main club entrance.  Ticket prices ranged from 100kc to 300kc.  We were fortunate to get a ticket for the Jizni tribuna end costing 250kc  behind the south goal but at the opposite end from the home and more boisterous Severni tribuna. On our ticket it told us we were in Sektor 123, rada (row) 1, sedadlo (seat) 9 to be precise.  However, once inside there were very few stewards and you could more or less choose any seat you wanted in any area of the ground being that the entire stadium barring V.I.P areas was accessible.  A crowd of around 13,500 had gathered meaning that with a capacity of 20,000 there were plenty of spare seats.

Before accessing the stadium I venture over to the visiting fans entrance the vstup hoste to see if any Sheriff Tiraspol fans have arrived at the stadia.  With Moldova being one of the poorest countries in Europe the chances of a sizable travelling support was minimal and unsurprisingly it was hard to identify any.  Once inside though there was a travelling support from Moldova numbering around 15 who chanted and sang in an effort to support the team.  One fan flew a Moldovan flag during the game but the others are barely heard against a barrage of noise and colour that comes from Slavia fans.   Home coach Karel Jarolím is the father of SV Hamburg captain David Jarolím and he springs a surprise by picking tall gangling defender Hloušek in attack alongside Stanislav Vlček.  The complimentary programme handed out to spectators makes reference to the fact that he is a registered as a defender with the club.   With the Czechs having a tradition of tall centre forward players from Lokvenc to Jan Koller its was obviously felt that the height of the player could unsettle the Sheriff defence.  Indeed, the decision looked inspired after 15 minutes when the 20-year-old, who had arrived from Czech outfit FK Jablonec in the close season, headed in Benjamin Vomáčka's deflected, shot.

After the goal Slavia went into shell, making heavy weather of any attacks and failing to trouble the Sheriff goal consistently despite the whole tie game being on tender hooks with only a one goal lead.  At half time we try out the food and its anything from sausages and mustard to cheeseburgers.  Two pints of pilsen beer is on offer at 60kc and drinks from 20kc to 50kc.   The free and easy going area is filled with Czech Slavia fans who nervously smoke cigarettes and discuss the managers’ column in the match programme.  As the second half commences Slavia's Petr Janda narrowly misses the chance to double his side's lead just after the restart but as the game goes on the hosts struggled to turn their lion's share of possession into clear-cut opportunities.

As the second half reached 70minutes played so Slavia and the coaching team became more nervous and longed for the full time whistle. FC Sheriff should have had a penalty awarded to them with half an hour left when African Andre Diedhiou is barged to the ground inside the box but the Italian referee Gianluca Rocchi waves away appeals.   The home crowd then become restless with every referee decision making the crowd angrier and the home players more anxious.  Each free kick Sheriff get is launched into the Slavia box Sheriff looked like they may get the crucial away goal. 

With key left sided midfielder Cerny and scorer Hloušek withdrawn and another makeshift defender flung on, so Slavia went further into a shell.  The fourth official then indicated four additional minutes were to be added and the clock ticked on.  Then a foul on Luis Antonio Rodriguez saw a free kick and a final long hopeful ball was swept diagonally into the Slavia box.  Punishment duly came in a frantic finish when Jose Nadson Ferreira struck in the forth minute of stoppage time with a diving header to square the tie at 1-1 and put Sheriff through on away goals.  As the teams kick off again the final whistle goes.

The Sheriff coaching team launched themselves onto the pitch in joyous celebration whilst Slavia players sat slumped across the pitch.  Slavia players held faces and heads in hands in disbelief.   Behind me a few Slavia fans sit in tears shell-shocked at what they had seen in front of them.  Sheriff players celebrated as if they had won the Champions League itself it surely the greatest overseas feat to come the way of a Transnistrian institution.  In the V.I.P area representatives of the club wearing the black and gold colours hug and jump for joy in almost disbelief at what fortune had befallen them.

On the train the next day on my way to the Sigma Olomouc v Aberdeen game the day’s Sport! Newspaper called the Slavia result a catastrophe and that was not far from the truth as Sheriff had barely had a shot on goal never mind launched any sort of telling attack during the 90 minutes.  As if Slavia’s result was not bad enough for the club, the result also meant the Czech Republic would have no representatives in this season's UEFA Champions League after AC Sparta Praha had lost out to Panathinaikos FC despite a 3-1 first leg lead.   Both Prague clubs now only had the consolation of going into the UEFA Europa League play-off draw alongside fellow Czech sides Sigma Olomouc and Slovan Liberec but it was small consolation for Slavia being that they were Champions of the previous year. Sheriff meanwhile by reaching the third qualifying round had already achieved their best-ever European performance.  The small Moldovan club with a game against Olympiakos are now one step away from the lucrative group stages and the chance to be the smallest ever club in the Champions League ever

Despite the calamitous nature of Slavia’s result and the implications of it the hardcore fans of Slavia still cheered loud and proud in the home end at least.    We later learn that after every game the footballers of Slavia Prague engage in an age old tradition where they sit down behind the home goal area and listen to the ritual thank you song from Slavia fans:

We are always with you
Red and White fighting force!
We are always with you!
After a win, after a loss
so long live to Slavia!

Slavia Prague are the holders of a world record as since 1892 the players of the club have traditionally been wearing the same colours with the club badge never changing during this time. Since its very first match the team have always played in the same traditional kit: the red-white half jersey and on the left side of the chest the point positioned red star.  The traditions of the club are long and well established but sadly for tonight Slavia have lost to a club founded only in 1997.  A new Sheriff was in town and Slavia had been blown away.