Changes didn’t help

Tralka was unable to play in Kielce after receiving a fourth yellow card in the previous match against Pogon Szczecin. In addition, considering that Abdul Aziz Tetteh, Lech’s second defensive midfielder, left the club a couple of weeks ago, Bjelica was forced to change the formation. Both Serafin and Moder had the chance to play for the senior team for the first time this season.

However, the Croatian coach decided to use one of the experienced players as opposed to the youngsters. Bjelica moved Emir Dilaver from the defensive line into the midfield where the footballer has already had the chance to play twice during this season – against Pogon in the Polish Cup and in the league match against Arka. In the two games, the player spent 26 minutes on the position of a defensive midfielder.

45 minutes into the match, Lech’s coach made the decision to move Dilaver to the right flank where Robert Gumny was playing in the first half. Meanwhile, the 19-year-old was moved up the flank and replaced his teammate, Kamil Jozwiak. In addition, Mihai Radut was brought on to fill in the hole in the midfield.

However, the changes forced by Tralka’s absence did not bring desirable results. “We didn’t have a single player on the pitch that was capable of winning a one-on-one clash. We didn’t lose this game because of the wasted penalty kick; we lost it way earlier,” explained Nenad Bjelica.

The absence of Tralka had a massive influence on Lech’s performance in the defense. Lech played poorly, especially in the first half. “Our performance in the defense wasn’t as good as in the previous games. We played poorly and struggled to intercept Korona’s long balls. In the second half, we played better, were in control of the game, but lost. The goal we conceded came out of nowhere,” added the Croatian coach.

Bjelica also wanted to strengthen his team’s offensive line by bringing on two strikers. Koljic and Gytkjaer were sent in as an attempt to bring some fresh energy to the squad. “We dominated the second half after adjusting the formation. However, it doesn’t alter the fact that we did not create enough scoring chances. If we continue performing this way, it will take ages before we win an away game,” summarized the coach.