Sparta Sets Unwanted League Record: Zero Shots and Zero xG for an Entire Half

Sparta Prague suffered yet another disappointing defeat in the Czech football league — this time losing 0:2 to Mladá Boleslav, and the first half of the match has now gone down in the league's statistical history books. According to Opta, which has tracked expected goals (xG) data since the 2020/2021 season, a Czech top-flight team finished a half with zero xG for the first time on record — not a single shot was taken, not even off target.

Coach Brian Priske fielded an experimental lineup: ongoing transfer sagas involving Jan Kuchta and Lukáš Haraslín kept both players out of the squad, while the likes of Yosimar Alcocer, Adam Karabec and Jonatan Braut Brunes started the match on the bench. Garang Kuol, Matyáš Vojta and Dominik Holý were given a chance to prove themselves — but to no avail.

Experts stunned by the result

"Zero xG is unacceptable — today's performance was simply poor," Priske admitted after the match. Experienced defender Jaroslav Zelený added: "In the first half we were completely powerless in the final third and created nothing. It's hard to win with an approach like that."

Former striker Václav Kadlec, commentating on the match for Oneplay Sport, pointed to the problem of constant squad rotation: "Teams abroad manage without endless changes — they let a core group play, with the domestic cup sometimes being the exception. Early in the season, you need to be able to handle that." Another pundit, Miroslav Matušovič, admitted he couldn't identify a single player from the bench who clearly deserved a place in the strongest possible lineup.

A better second half, but too little too late

Thanks to substitutions, Sparta livened up somewhat in the second half — the Prague side's first shot came only in the 54th minute (a blocked effort from Alcocer), and later Brunes struck the crossbar and missed another good chance. Even so, by full time Sparta had officially failed to register a single shot on target in the entire match — a scenario that had occurred fairly recently as well, during a 0:2 defeat in Plzeň in April 2025.

The loss to the Central Bohemian side marks Sparta's second away defeat of the season, following an earlier setback against Zbrojovka Brno. After three rounds, the Prague club has picked up just three points.

Around Prague, based on reporting by sport.cz