Czech League: Leaders Slavia Host Sensational Zbrojovka

The seventh round of the Czech football league kicks off on Saturday, and the day's headline match sees Prague's Slavia host Brno's Zbrojovka at the champions' home ground. Slavia sit top of the table with 14 points, while Zbrojovka — the league's debutants — surprisingly occupy second place, just one point behind the leaders, a sensational start for a newly promoted side.

Martin Svědík's charges stormed into the top flight on a wave of momentum and arrive at the match on the back of three straight wins — over Teplice, Zlín and Hradec Králové. Slavia, meanwhile, head into the trip to Brno fresh off a 3:0 demolition of city rivals Sparta in the derby, so both sides go into the game full of confidence.

The Battle for Third and Other Storylines of the Round

Fifth-placed Olomouc, who lost 0:1 to Baník in the last round, trail second place by three points and will look for revenge at home against eleventh-placed Bohemians. The Prague club sat out last weekend due to an illness outbreak in the squad, but played their postponed fixture against Jablonec during the week, securing a solid 1:1 draw — following an eye-catching 2:2 derby with Slavia at the Ďolíček's Sinobo Stadium.

Fourteenth-placed Slovácko celebrated only their second point of the season a week ago, though a valuable one: a 1:1 draw in Plzeň pleased both fans and coach Jan Jelínek, who has been in charge of the side since the summer. Fifteenth-placed Pardubice, meanwhile, with just one point so far, find themselves in the danger zone — their form doesn't match their league position, and the club needs a win away from home, or talk of serious trouble in East Bohemia will become unavoidable.

Brno's Second Newcomer and Transition Times in Plzeň

Brno's other debutant club, Artis, started the season far more modestly than their local rivals Zbrojovka, but last week claimed the club's first-ever top-flight win, beating Pardubice 2:1. That victory lifted Artis to twelfth place, while Plzeň, just one spot above them, are going through a rough patch.

A poor start to the season already cost Martin Hyský his job, and his successor Radoslav Kováč has yet to deliver results in the league either — though the team's European debut went well. After a 1:1 draw with Slovácko, the side badly needs a full win.

In total, eight matches are scheduled for the seventh round over Saturday and Sunday, including Mladá Boleslav vs. Baník, Jablonec vs. Liberec, Zlín vs. Teplice, and Hradec Králové vs. Sparta.

Read also: Brno: What to See and Where to Go

Source: sport.cz