Slavia Prague fly to Istanbul without Chorý for Champions League tie

Prague’s Slavia kept its promise: striker Tomáš Chorý was not on the plane to Istanbul. Although, after his sending-off in the home match against Hradec Králové, he could have played in European competition, coach Jindřich Trpišovský said right after Saturday’s game that the player would stay in Prague as a punishment.

The 31-year-old forward received his fourth red card in the past two seasons, this time for unsporting behavior. Referee Jan Všetečka noted in his report that Chorý had shown him the middle finger. The player’s future at Slavia remains uncertain.

A heavy schedule and Champions League setbacks

The Czech champions drew 0–0 with Hradec Králové while playing with ten men and have now gone two matches in a row without scoring. On Tuesday, in the second round of the Champions League, Slavia unexpectedly lost 2–0 to Sabah in Baku and again failed to end a 19-year wait for a win in the tournament’s main stage. The club is two matches away from equaling that unflattering record.

The schedule is very tight for the Prague side: the next away trip comes in a week. In European competition the team traditionally flies to away games two days ahead. “The schedule is very packed. First the trip to Zlín, then the long flight to Azerbaijan, to Baku. Now there was a short break, we spent a little time in Prague, but we are flying off on a long journey again, to Turkey. I hope there is plenty of energy left to finally break through in the Champions League,” goalkeeping coach Štěpán Kolář told the club’s TV channel.

What awaits Slavia in Istanbul

Slavia last played at Fenerbahçe’s stadium in 2022: in Istanbul, in the first leg of the Conference League play-off, it won 3–2 and repeated the same score at home to go through. Two years ago in the Europa League, Fenerbahçe lost 2–1 at Eden.

The Turkish runners-up are the favorites, although in the last round they suffered a 6–0 thrashing at Aston Villa. “When we played there last time, they were at odds with their fans and there weren’t many people in the stadium. But the stadium is huge. It will probably be sold out, so we can expect a fierce atmosphere. Plus star players, so we’ll see,” Kolář said.

On Monday, Slavia will hold its traditional pre-match training session in Istanbul. The match kicks off on Tuesday at 6:45 p.m. Central European Summer Time, an hour later in Turkey. The delegation already includes one of the recently injured players, midfielder Pavel Kačor, who returned to the bench after a shoulder injury in the match against Hradec Králové.

Around Prague, based on reporting by sport.cz