U23 World League

Dragons Graveyard
Spectators: 7686 (Terracing: 5765, Seating: 1768, VIP seats: 153) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Traian Hăvârneanu kicked off to start the match. After a rather tough play, FC Draconia's Adrià Vassaras got a free kick in the 5th minute. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Traian Hăvârneanu in the 8th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Uwe Nwachukwu prevented the ball from getting in the gole. 9 minutes into the match, FC Draconia's goal looked a bit too open when Luís Caeiro came free, but Uwe Nwachukwu reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. In the 11th match minute, FC Draconia was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Ief De Groote to maneuver through the defense. In the 17th minute, Luís Caeiro made a precise shot to the right of Uwe Nwachukwu. FC Draconia's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 0-1. Uwe Nwachukwu showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Jaime Corte-Real in the 21st minute of the match. After a defensive mix-up in VB-Team's zone, Ief De Groote stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Osvaldo Vilaverde came out of the goal and Ief De Groote tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. An unexpectedly hard shot by Traian Hăvârneanu in the 24th minute of play forced FC Draconia's goalkeeper Uwe Nwachukwu to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Emanuel Van Damme kicked well hit freekick during the 31st minute of the match. In the 33rd minute, Klaus Dhondt hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Uwe Nwachukwu made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Traian Hăvârneanu in the 34th minute of play. Osvaldo Vilaverde was out of position in the 37 minute of play, and Ief De Groote capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Ief De Groote really showed his touch with that goal: 1-1. Thanks to some nice moves Etienne Langhmans could shoot a difficult shot in the 41st minute, which Osvaldo Vilaverde however easily saved by the left post. After 44 minutes of play, VB-Team's Luís Caeiro made it 1-2 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Uwe Nwachukwu was left in no man's land by his defense there! In the 46th minute, Luís Caeiro ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Uwe Nwachukwu was frozen by the shot and now it was 1-3. Even after changing tactics the home team jogged off the field with a 1-3 deficit. They would have to work harder if they wanted to turn things around in the second half.

In the 52nd minute Ief De Groote shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Osvaldo Vilaverde saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Uwe Nwachukwu showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Jaime Corte-Real in the 54th minute of the match. After some careless play in the FC Draconia defense, Jaime Corte-Real kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Uwe Nwachukwu. The FC Draconia fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Uwe Nwachukwu should have stopped the shot. After 58 played minutes FC Draconia got a freekick which was hit by Klaus Dhondt. In the 62nd match minute, FC Draconia was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Teo De Kelper to maneuver through the defense. Uwe Nwachukwu made an important save on a dangerous shot by Luís Caeiro in the 64th minute. 71 minutes into the match, FC Draconia's goalkeeper Uwe Nwachukwu had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Luís Caeiro. Etienne Langhmans struck a weak shot in the 75th minute. Osvaldo Vilaverde didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for FC Draconia. In the 76th minute, Valter Prada hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. The throw-in from Nélson Trindade in the 79th minute of the game was unfortunally taken care of by FC Draconia's Teo De Kelper. FC Draconia's Uwe Nwachukwu proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 81st minute of the match, managed to save FC Draconia from getting a goal against them. Luís Caeiro could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 87th minute of the match, but Uwe Nwachukwu made a huge save. In the 89th minute Jaime Corte-Real shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Uwe Nwachukwu saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. In the 92nd minute Klaus Dhondt shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Osvaldo Vilaverde saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. An unexpectedly hard shot by Traian Hăvârneanu in the 96th minute of play forced FC Draconia's goalkeeper Uwe Nwachukwu to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. VB-Team played a much better game than FC Draconia and deserved their victory. The FC Draconia players were clearly disappointed as they left the ground.