blackcats 4 - 1 Ghetto (393074264)

It was an exceptionally sunny day for the crowd of 3393 that came out to roker park. Neil Hughes was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Jarl Bregnsbo and Jarek Lill. A 3-5-2 alignment was the formation of choice for blackcats. The following players took the field: Smart - Schifferly, Ayora, Masala - Pimentel, Albrighton, Heinold, Sandoval, Abubakirov - Wong, Böhmke.

Ghetto decided to use a 2-5-2 set up. The following players had been chosen: Chiriatti - Wennstål, Moreira - Noja, Tamelli, Spasojević, Passanti, Casciotti - Álvarez, Żalikowski.

blackcats were mostly trying to use their skill at attacking on the flanks. The strategy for Ghetto was to use their ability to press. 6 minutes in, Ghetto appeared unsure on how to play and their organisation was only poor. After 8 minutes, N. Heinold came in from the right, feinted, then sped past the off-balance defender to make the score 1 - 0, giving blackcats the lead. Things were going to get worse for the visitors. L. Albrighton squirmed through their central defence after 19 minutes, increasing the lead to 2 - 0. It might be a while before the fans see blackcats's H. Wong again, after he had to leave the field in great distress at the 33 minute mark. He was replaced by J. Westerbom. 39 minutes into the game, Ghetto had difficulty finding their positions and their organisation dropped to poor. 40 minutes in, Ghetto's P. Wennstål received a yellow card for going into a challenge studs first. Due to a severely mistimed tackle, L. Albrighton of blackcats spent some time on the grass writhing in agony before he could get up and continue the game. Halftime score was 2 - 0. blackcats claimed to have seen most of the ball, and the statistics agreed with them - possession being 68 percent.

The coach gave his players an extra tactical briefing during the break, and after that Ghetto had passable organisation. The bench was restless, and with 46 minutes passed Ghetto's coach gave D. Hrženjak the opportunity the player had been hoping for. S. Chiriatti reluctantly left the field. Ghetto needed a fresh pair of legs on the field, and after 50 minutes J. Casciotti made way for K. Gunst. After 55 minutes, Ghetto switched A. Noja with J. Ballester, hoping for a quick impact on the pitch. As usual, R. Pimentel tried to use his strength and hard work for the benefit of the team, but the heat hit him hard and he couldn't keep pace at all. It was obvious that blackcats had instructions to attack on the wings instead of in the middle. blackcats's A. Sandoval increased the lead to 3 - 0, after he saw his shot go between the legs of the advancing goalkeeper following some good play down the right wing after 59 minutes. 67 minutes into the game, Ghetto seemed a little tentative in their play as their organization fell to inadequate. With 73 minutes played, blackcats's J. Westerbom almost extended the lead, but his shot from the left glanced off the top of the bar to fall behind the net. With 78 minutes played, seemingly due to lack of experience, L. Albrighton needlessly tripped an opponent just outside the penalty area, but the free kick that followed didn't succeed. After 82 minutes, blackcats were awarded a free kick. Rather than shooting straight at goal, the taker went for an indirect variant which seemed to take his team mates a bit by surprise. F. Böhmke did attempt a finish, but from an awkward position, sending the ball into the away fans. After 84 minutes, there was a bit of a mixup on the field as Ghetto found themselves out of position and their organisation level dropped to weak. With 85 minutes played, blackcats put themselves up 4 - 0 when the visiting defenders lost the ball to R. Pimentel, who came up from the left and proceeded to coolly round the keeper and knock the ball home. By now, the players in blackcats felt that victory was guaranteed and began to play it safe, focusing on defence and not risking too much going forward. Attacking on the wings was the choice for blackcats, and they were successfully passing the ball from the middle to the wings to attack. With 88 minutes played, N. Heinold could have brought this one home for blackcats as he charged up on the left, but his hooked ball went just a bit too high. 88 minutes into the match, Ghetto replied and reduced the lead to 4 - 1. G. Passanti scored on a marvellous cross pass coming in from the left. Possession in the forty-five minutes was dominated by blackcats, with 65 percent of the ball.

J. Westerbom performed admirably for blackcats. However, Ó. Ayora made a disastrous appearance. Most important Ghetto player was M. Álvarez. V. Moreira turned in a dismal performance, however. The match ends 4 - 1.