In Round 24 of the PKO BP Ekstraklasa, Lechia Gdańsk hosted Jagiellonia Białystok at home. It was a hugely important match for the White-and-Greens – after a draw in the Tricity Derby, they had to face the league leaders straight away. Adrian Siemieniec’s side came into the game after an impressive Conference League win over Fiorentina and a 2:2 draw with Legia Warsaw.
The Gdańsk side started the match much better than the Pride of Podlasie. As early as the 4th minute, Lechia had two chances to take the lead. First, after a superb flowing move, Tomas Bobček received the ball in the box from Camilo Mena, but his first-time effort went wide. Moments later, the Colombian unleashed a powerful strike from outside the penalty area, but Jagiellonia goalkeeper Sławomir Abramowicz made the save. From the opening minutes, Lechia tried to take control of the match and exploit the visitors’ shaky defensive organization.
In the following minutes, neither side created many clear-cut chances, and most of the play took place in midfield. In the 26th minute, after a good pass from Rifet Kapić, Aleksandar Cirković found a bit of space in front of the penalty area. His shot, however, was too weak to trouble Abramowicz. Shortly afterwards, Kapić again showed his class, playing a brilliant first-time pass into the box to Camilo Mena. The Colombian crossed towards Tomas Bobček, but the alert Abramowicz intercepted the delivery.
During this period, Lechia won the ball back very quickly in Jagiellonia’s half and tried to turn that into more chances. Unfortunately, they lacked precision in the final phase of their attacks, and the fans in Gdańsk had to wait for the breakthrough. In the 33rd minute, the hosts finally carved out a real scoring opportunity after a quickly taken set piece. Camilo Mena played a low ball into the box for Tomas Bobček. The Slovak did put the ball in the net, but he had been offside and the goal was ruled out.
Lechia continued to dominate and control the game. In the 39th minute, they produced a very impressive move. Bobček flicked the ball with his heel to the overlapping Matúš Vojtko. He passed to Kacper Sezonienko, who was positioned just outside the box, and Sezonienko spotted the full-back making a run into the area and returned the ball to him. Vojtko took a touch, set himself, and fired a powerful left-footed shot towards the near post, but Abramowicz pulled off an excellent save.
Lechia’s pressure finally paid off. In the 43rd minute, Rifet Kapić won the ball just outside Jagiellonia’s penalty area. The Lechia captain burst into the box, beat a defender, and beat Abramowicz with a delicate chipped effort inside the post. In that moment, “Riki” showed the full range of his technical ability, and his run will no doubt stay in the memory of the visitors’ defenders for a long time.
Strong control of the game and confirmed dominance in the second half
After the break, both teams returned to the pitch unchanged. In the 60th minute, Matúš Vojtko combined well on the flank with Aleksandar Cirković. Lechia’s left-back delivered a low cross into the penalty area towards Tomas Bobček, but Abramowicz was once again alert and gathered the ball.
Adrian Siemieniec was the first to make substitutions. In the 62nd minute, Guilherme Serrao and Mathias Nahuel came on to replace Wojtuszek and Wdowik. In the 69th minute, Lechia came close to doubling their lead. After a good team move, Kacper Sezonienko worked the ball into a shooting position in the penalty area and tried a technical finish, but his attempt was blocked by visiting defender Andy Pelmard.
In the 73rd minute, the Jagiellonia coach brought on Samed Bazdar for Afimico Pululu. Shortly after, John Carver made his first substitution, with the injured Camilo Mena replaced by Tomasz Neugebauer. Alex Paulsen had little to do for most of the match, but in the 76th minute he produced a fantastic intervention. He first saved a dangerous shot from Mathias Nahuel, then reacted instantly to knock the ball away from the feet of a Jagiellonia attacker trying to convert the rebound.
Although the final stages of the game were tense, Lechia did not stop searching for a second goal. In the 81st minute, after a long clearance from Maksym Diachuk, Aleksandar Cirković latched onto the ball behind the visitors’ defensive line. The Serbian controlled it after a header bounce and drove towards goal. One-on-one with Abramowicz, he kept his composure and lifted the ball over the goalkeeper with an elegant lob.
Late on, Jagiellonia tried to pull one back, but Lechia’s well-organized defence prevented the visitors from creating real danger. Their best chance came in stoppage time from a corner, but Tomasz Neugebauer made a superb goal-line clearance.
In the final minute of stoppage time, Lechia put the game beyond all doubt. Tomas Bobček found himself one-on-one with Abramowicz, but instead of shooting, he spotted Aleksandar Cirković in an even better position. The Slovak showed great unselfishness and squared the ball to the Serbian, who calmly slotted into the empty net.
Lechia controlled the match throughout and fully deserved their 3:0 win over the Ekstraklasa leaders. In doing so, the Gdańsk side became the first team in this calendar year to defeat Jagiellonia Białystok.
Lechia Gdańsk – Jagiellonia Białystok 3:0 (1:0)
1:0 Kapić 43′
2:0 Cirković 81′
3:0 Cirković 90+4′
Lechia Gdańsk: Paulsen – Wójtowicz (90+2′ Kłudka), Diachuk, Rodin, Vojtko – Mena (74′ Neugebauer), Zhelizko, Kapić, Cirković – Sezonienko (88′ Viunnyk), Bobček
Jagiellonia Białystok: Abramowicz – Wojtuszek (62′ Nahuel), Konstantopoulos, Pelmard, Wdowik (62′ Serrao) – Romanczuk, Mazurek (88′ Sylla), Pozo, Szmyt – Imaz, Pululu (73′ Bazdar)