MOL Cup draw, Czech football cup – illustrative photo.
Prague – In the semi-final of the domestic cup, Slavia's football players will challenge Bohemians 1905, a neighbor from Vršovice, in the Prague derby in Eden. In the second match, last year's MOL Cup finalist Sparta will welcome České Budějovice. It was decided by today's lottery at the FAČR headquarters in Strahov. The official date for the semi-finals is Wednesday, April 5.
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The leader of the first league table Slavia defeated the second league Vyškov 4:0 at home in the quarterfinals, Bohemians won 2:1 on the field of the defending champion Slovácko. Sparta won in Liberec only after a penalty shootout, and České Budějovice defeated Zbrojovka Brno 2:1.
Slavia played against opponents from the second league in the previous three rounds, and the draw was friendly to them this time as well. The Red and Whites will play the semi-finals after a one-year hiatus. Overall, they are aiming for their seventh cup triumph in separate history.
On the contrary, Bohemians made it into the top four only for the second time since the division of the federation and for the first time since the 2018/19 season. The Kangaroos, who are in fifth place in the league, have never advanced to the finals. In the last mutual duel in the top competition, Slavia won 4:1 in Ďolíček at the end of October, also thanks to the controversial verdicts of referee Tomáš Klíma.
“We are satisfied that we are playing at home. But it will certainly not be easy, Bohemians are showing it this season. They are in fifth place in the table and managed to knock out the defending champions in Slovakia. We want to make the fans happy and advance,” said the manager of Slavist A after the draw – to the Přemysl Kovář team.
The home team will also be the clear favorite in the second semi-final. A year ago, Sparta lost in the cup only in the final in Slovakia and currently has the best form of all the league teams. From the third place in the table, Letenští lose only two points to the first place. However, the South Bohemians are also doing well, having beaten the leaders Slavia 1:0 at home last time in the top competition and after a series of three rounds without a loss, they are in 13th position.
Sparta can advance to the final of the cup for the second time in a row. With seven triumphs in their separate history, Letenský are the most successful overall, the last time they won three years ago. On the other hand, Dynamo České Budějovice reached the semi-finals for only the third time and for the first time since the 2006/07 season and have not yet made it further.
If Slavia and Sparta fulfill their role as favourites, they will be in the final for the first time since 2001/02 and the second time since the division of the federation Prague “S” will play. The team from Eden then won 2:1.