SVZW 3-2 RSCA

On Thursday evening, Sporting faced Zulte Waregem on matchday 13 of the JPL. Felice Mazzù alligned the same players as last Sunday against Bruges. After an incidentful game under the pooring rain with a red card for Kristian Arnstad, the Mauves lost 3-2.

Zulte Waregem took the lead from the very first chance. Alieu Fadera put the ball in front of goal, Jelle Vossen was allowed to score unchallenged with his head. Not much later, Lasse Vigen Christensen hit the post. The first danger for RSCA came by the name of Jan Vertonghen, he tried to score on a drop, but his effort was deflected wide. A header by Amir Murillo and a shot by Lucas Stassin were also saved. The 1-1 then seemed looked to be appointed to Fábio Silva after he found the nets following a good individual move by Amir Murillo, but his goal was disallowed due to offside by Kristian Arnstad. However, after some confusion, the ball did go on the spot: in an earlier phase, Silva was wrongly stopped in the penalty area, which the VAR had spotted. End result: a yellow card for Zulte, and still the 1-1 in the name of the Portuguese striker who converted the penalty. Just before half-time, referee Laforge drew a second yellow and therefore red card on Zeno Debast, but that phase as well was undone after a VAR moment.

After half-time, Yari Verschaeren and Francis Amuzu came into the field for Lucas Stassin and Moussa N'Diaye. That second half was marked by pooring rain, and an increasingly difficult field to play on. Under that pouring rain, Sporting took the lead after a good cross from Jan Vertonghen in the box, and ditto lay-off from Yari Verschaeren to Amadou Diawara, who thus scored his first goal for RSCA. Sporting seemed to have found the right track altogether when Fábio Silva scored a third goal, but his goal was rightly flagged off. Afterwards, it was sink or swim, which did not help the quality of play along both sides. In one such duel, Kristian Arnstad tried to work himself loose from his defender, hitting the defender in the process and thus leaving Sporting with ten men. A red card that would have big consequenses. In the closing stages of the match, Zulte Waregem first came alongside after Abdoulaye Sissako was able to head in freely, and in the 10-minute injury time Zinho Gano finished it off altogether, again with his head. 3-2 final score for the home side, Standard await at Sclessin on Sunday.