Aug 28, 2024

Sparta Prague Secures Champions League Spot After 19-Year Wait

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Sparta Prague will return to the Champions League for the first time in 19 years, marking their ninth appearance in the elite tournament.

The Czech side secured their spot by defeating Malmö 2-0 in a decisive home match, following a similar win in Sweden last week.

Both teams missed penalties in the first half, with Sparta’s Veljko Birmančević and Malmö’s Anders Christiansen failing to convert.

The deadlock was broken in the 80th minute when Lukáš Haraslín successfully scored his third penalty attempt of the match. Shortly thereafter, Albion Rrahmani, making his debut for Sparta, sealed the win with a second goal.

Sparta previously eliminated Ireland’s Shamrock Rovers and Romania’s FCSB, earning around 18 million euros (approximately 466 million CZK) for advancing to the group stage.

This season, the Champions League will feature a new league format with 36 teams competing in a single table. The draw on Thursday in Monaco will determine Sparta’s eight opponents, with each team playing eight matches—four at home and four away—against different clubs.

The match began with a minute’s applause in memory of Swedish coach Sven-Göran Eriksson, who passed away on Monday at the age of 76.

Early on, Malmö missed a key chance when former player Birmančević sent a penalty shot over the bar. Moments later, Sparta’s goalkeeper Vindahl saved a penalty from Christiansen, keeping the game level.

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Sparta continued to press forward, but it wasn’t until the 78th minute that Busanello’s foul on Preciado resulted in a second penalty for the home side. Haraslín made no mistake this time, scoring his fourth goal of the qualification campaign.

A few moments later, Rrahmani, the club’s most expensive signing, scored on his debut after a pass from Haraslín.


 

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