FCZ is the better team for half of the first game with interim coach Genesio Colatrella, but GC coach Giorgo Contini makes the right changes during the break. Neither team can be really satisfied with the 1:1.
Scores his first goal of the season in the derby against GC: FCZ midfielder Antonio Marchesano (right).
Anything else coming? After all, it was the Zurich derby that was splashing towards the end. It was a weak second half that FCZ and GC offered to almost 17,000 spectators. Added time lasted three minutes and lo and behold – something else happened in this 279th encounter between the city rivals. It was FCZ in particular who tried everything again with high balls. Ultimately, it was Blerim Dzemaili who got everything right from a tight angle. But GC goalie Justin Hammel fended off the deflected ball with his foot.
“I don’t know how he did it either,” said Dzemaili after the game. But FCZ’s first victory would have been a good reward. The FCZ had missed too many chances, the actions in the last thirty meters were not clear enough. Nevertheless, the FCZ leader was able to sum up: “Our performance was much better than in the last few games – we can build on that.”
This is especially true in the first half. The FCZ was the better team, but they benefited from the Grasshoppers, who kept making hair-raising individual mistakes. One GC player in particular stood out: Li Lei. Less than fifteen minutes had been played before the Chinese GC defender drew attention – in a negative sense, however. The 30-year-old lined up positional mistakes and bad passes until he finally initiated one of several counterattacks for Zurich. Tosin served Marchesano, 1-0 for FCZ. Later, Li Lei was lucky to only see yellow instead of red as he straight-legged at Tosin. After the break, Abrashi came on for him.
The change had an immediate effect. It was Bolla who equalized after good preliminary work from Morandi – a nice goal, which FCZ believe was preceded by poor defensive work by Kamberi, Selnaes and Boranjasevic. After the equalizer, the two teams seemed satisfied with the result. The game flattened out, the quality dropped, with advantages for FCZ.
In the end, however, FCZ failed to pull themselves out of the swamp with a win. With only three points, the champions are still ten points behind GC, who lacked the order and momentum after the national team break to be able to win against FCZ for the first time since February 2018. In the end nobody was happy, but nobody had to go home unhappy either.
Grasshoppers – Zurich 1: 1 (0: 1). 16 794 spectators. – Referee: Ensign. – Gates: 14. Marchesano 0-1. 49. Bolla 1:1. – Grasshoppers: Mutton; Ribeiro, Margreitter, Li (46. Abrashi); Ndenge; Bolla, Pusic (75th De Carvalho), Kawabe (75th Herc), Schmid; Morandi (89 Shabani), Dadashov (84 Schettine). – Zurich: crusher; Kamberi, Kryeziu, Aliti; Boranijasevic, Dzemaili, Selnaes, Guerrero; Krasniqi (84th Santini); Marchesano, Tosin (Vyunnyk 68). – Remarks: Grasshoppers without Loosli, Seko (both suspended), Hoxha, Kacuri, Momoh and Moreira (all injured). Zurich without Okita (suspended), Omeragic, Reichmuth and Sauter (all injured). Warnings: 19. Bolla (foul). 42. Li (foul). 42. Aliti (Reclaiming). 47 Ribeiro (foul). 53. Dadashow (foul/banned in the next game). 69. Dzemaili (foul). 90. Santini (foul).
great league. 9th round. Saturday: Basel – St Gallen 3: 2 (2: 1). Grasshoppers – Zurich 1: 1 (0: 1). – Sunday: Sitten – Winterthur (2.15 p.m.). Lugano – Servette. Lucerne – Young Boys (both 4.30 p.m.). – Ranking: 1.Young Boys 8/17. 2. Servette 8/17. 3. St Gallen 9/15. 4. Manners 8/14. 5. Grasshoppers 9/13. 6. Basel 8/12. 7. Lucerne 7/11. 8. Lugano 8/9. 9. Zurich 9/3. 10. Winterthur 8/2.