Challenge

Gazprom Arena
Spectators: 40 (Terracing: 31, Seating: 9, VIP seats: 0) Håkan Kjellman made the kick off and thus started the match. In the 5th minute, Emanuel Emander left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The FC Zenit Saint Petersburg fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 1-0. The audience thought a goal was coming when Håkan Kjellman got free with Dante Lacasa in the 12th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Zafer Hürsel showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Alberto Tafalla in the 14th minute of the match. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Alberto Tafalla in the 14th managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Zafer Hürsel saved FC Zenit Saint Petersburg from getting behind. A collision led to Mexico getting a freekick after 16 minutes play. Felix Luque hit a great ball. In the 18th match minute, Mexico was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Alberto Tafalla to maneuver through the defense. Dante Lacasa made a fantastic save in the 22nd minute, when Håkan Kjellman sent off a good shot on target. The crowd rose to their feet as Håkan Kjellman kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Dante Lacasa. That made the score 2-1 in the 22 minute of play. Zafer Hürsel showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Joel Gaona, who was totally free with the ball in the 24th minute. The audience thought a goal was coming when Håkan Kjellman got free with Dante Lacasa in the 29th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. 31 minutes into the match, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's goal looked a bit too open when Alberto Tafalla came free, but Zafer Hürsel reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Zafer Hürsel made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Luca Zorita in the 32nd minute of play. Zafer Hürsel took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Lautaro Mancebo, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 38th minute the ball was on its way in behind Mexico's goalkeeper Dante Lacasa, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. In the 44th match minute, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Aron Sjöberg to maneuver through the defense. In the 45th minute, Aron Sjöberg hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. No-one was surprised that the home team were leading 2-1 at half-time.

When the second half was about to start, both teams quickly lined up and Joel Gaona made a kick off. Emanuel Emander struck a weak shot in the 53rd minute. Dante Lacasa didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for FC Zenit Saint Petersburg. Dante Lacasa made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Emanuel Emander in the 60th minute of play. In the 61st minute, Lautaro Mancebo reached a very good position and smashed the ball with a huge effort into the net, just to the left of Zafer Hürsel. The goal made the score 2-2. The throw-in from Joel Gaona in the 65th minute of the game was unfortunally taken care of by FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's Johannes Botvidsson. In the 66th match minute, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Aron Sjöberg to maneuver through the defense. A collision led to FC Zenit Saint Petersburg getting a freekick after 67 minutes play. Aron Sjöberg hit a great ball. Dante Lacasa showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Håkan Kjellman, who was totally free with the ball in the 69th minute. 72 minutes into the match, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's goalkeeper Zafer Hürsel had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Alberto Tafalla. After some careless play in the Mexico defense, Håkan Kjellman kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Dante Lacasa. The Mexico fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Dante Lacasa should have stopped the shot. FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's Valentin Ivarsson was substituted for Emanuel Emander. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Felix Luque during the 80th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's attacker deliberately struck the ball against an opponent to win a corner for his team. The corner was taken by Johannes Botvidsson in the 83rd minute. After taking down the ball on FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's corner Johannes Botvidsson fired away a hard shot, but the defenders efficiently covered the most dangerous angles and Dante Lacasa quite easily take care of the ball. Hami Çerağ charged in rather forcefully in the 84th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Hami Çerağ the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. After a rather tough play, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's Hami Çerağ got a free kick in the 84th minute. If Lautaro Mancebo had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 85th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. With a little luck, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's Zafer Hürsel got control of the ball when Alberto Tafalla tried to sneak it across the goal line. Mexico made a substitution. Bautista Elvira replaced Lautaro Mancebo. Aron Sjöberg kicked well hit freekick during the 92nd minute of the match. FC Zenit Saint Petersburg's Zafer Hürsel proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 94th minute of the match, managed to save FC Zenit Saint Petersburg from getting a goal against them. Dante Lacasa took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Valentin Ivarsson, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. For all the effort they put into the match, the Mexico players left disappointed. They had fought hard, but couldn't break down the home team's defense. The match ended in a win for FC Zenit Saint Petersburg.