Adelaide United and FK Beograd enjoyed a day out at Coopers Stadium on Friday, with the visitors taking home three points in a match that left the Young Reds reflecting on numerous missed opportunities.
Beograd threatened early through Abu-Bakari Hussein, who attempted to catch Max Vartuli off his line with a lob, before the Reds began to settle and grow into the contest.
A pivotal moment arrived on 13 minutes when keeper Alex Woodlands produced a superb double save. First, he got down well to palm away Fabian Talladira’s curling free-kick, before reacting quickly again to push aside a powerful Panashe Madanha drive from outside the box.
United continued to create openings. Amlani Tatu blazed over on 19 minutes, while Jake Najdovski showed quick feet on 27 minutes to work his way through the Beograd defence, only to slide his finish into Woodlands’ arms.
The breakthrough came on 37 minutes, as Beograd capitalised on a defensive error. Captain Lorenzo Boselli rounded Vartuli and rolled into the empty net, sparking celebrations among the strong away support.
Image: Lorenzo Boselli celebrating the eventual winner. Credit: Pagonis Photography
In stoppage time, Najdovski nearly produced a moment of brilliance, picking the ball up inside his own half and surging past a host of Beograd defenders before sliding his effort agonisingly wide of the post – a goal that would have lived long in the memory.
Image: Jake Najdovski left frustrated after a dazzling run. Credit: Pagonis Photography
The second half followed a similar script, with the Young Reds seeing plenty of the ball and generating chances without finding the finish. Early after the restart, Vartuli released Tatu with a long through ball, but the winger couldn’t convert over Woodlands. Later, Madanha fired over from close range after a neat pull-back from Alex Battistella, and Najdovski’s set-piece effort drifted just wide as the Reds searched for an equaliser.
Ultimately, it wasn’t to be against a well-organised and disciplined FK Beograd side who took their key moment and defended strongly for the remainder.
There was a positive late on, with Kalan Alagich – younger brother of Ethan – coming on to make his Adelaide United NPL Senior debut, while Paul Vanis will take plenty of encouraging signs from the performance despite the result.
Starting XI
#13 Max Vartuli (C) (GK)
#18 Jake Najdovski (off 87’)
#36 Panashe Madanha
#45 Alex Battistella
#54 Bailey O’Neil
#58 Harry Crawford
#62 Fabian Talladira
#67 Luka Blazevic (off 87’)
#74 Amlani Tatu
#78 Malual Nichola (off 63’)
#79 Feyzo Kasumovic
Substitutes
#15 Israel Mbula-Monga (on 63’)
#47 Mutsa Mupandawana
#57 Liam Stam (on 87’)
#60 Hugo Ng (GK)
#84 Kaspar Kuzman
#88 Kalan Alagich (on 87’)
FULL MATCH STREAM
