On Saturday, Raimonds Krollis made his debut in the Czech top-flight for Slovan Liberec as they suffered a heartbreaking defeat against one of the league leaders, Viktoria Plzeň, with a score of 2-3.
The 23-year-old forward was announced as a new signing for FC Slovan Liberec just three days prior, joining from the Italian Serie B side Spezia Calcio for a reported fee of €300,000. Today he was named in the squad as he started the match on the bench.
Viktoria Plzeň, as the pre-match favorites, quickly established their dominance by scoring two early goals in the 9th and 11th minutes. Liberec responded quickly, pulling one back just two minutes later to cut the deficit in half.
Krollis debuted for the club in the 64th minute, coming on for 21-year-old Ghanaian striker Benjamin Nyarko. Just three minutes after his entry, Slovan Liberec surprisingly tied the game, with Michal Hlavaty scoring his fifth goal of the season.
— FC Slovan Liberec (@FCSlovanLiberec) February 8, 2025
64' | #PLZLIB | 2:1
1. a 2. střídání #FCSL:
Na hřiště se podívá nováček v našem dresu Krollis, který střídá Nyarka.
Eneme jde na hřiště místo Frýdka. pic.twitter.com/e6qazoWutf
However, seven minutes later, Liberec faced a significant setback when their starting goalkeeper received a straight red card, leaving the team a man down. Despite the pressure from Plzeň, Krollis remained active during his time on the pitch and drew a foul from a Plzeň defender, which could have warranted a red card. However, the referee only issued a yellow card to the defender.
— O2 TV Sport (@O2TVSportCZ) February 8, 2025
V 82. minutě viděl žlutou kartu za zákrok na Krollise obránce Markovič. #chanceliga pic.twitter.com/1R4C8r29bx
In hindsight, this moment could have been a turning point. Just two minutes later, Plzeň scored the game-winning goal, netted by Markovič, the same player who had fouled Krollis moments earlier. As Viktoria Plzen escaped with the win and three points.
Slovan Liberec is now 11th in the league table with 24 points following this defeat. Krollis and his team will play again next Sunday when they host Mladá Boleslav.