Latvian international striker Raimonds Krollis began the new Czech First League season in style, scoring Slovan Liberec’s opening goal of the campaign as his team came back from two goals down to earn a dramatic 3–3 draw against Mladá Boleslav.
The 23-year-old forward, who netted six goals in 11 league appearances last season following his move to the Czech Republic, was named in the starting lineup — as expected — and wasted no time making his mark.
Liberec fell behind early in the 14th minute after David Pech gave the hosts the lead. But just minutes later, Krollis capitalized on a defensive blunder. A misplaced back pass landed directly at the feet of the Latvian striker, who swiftly turned and fired a shot from a tight angle past the goalkeeper to level the score.
The first half ended 1–1, but Mladá Boleslav came out stronger after the break. Pech turned provider, assisting Roman Macek and later Michal Ševčík to put the home side 3–1 up. Not long after, Krollis was substituted, and Liberec faced an uphill battle.
They responded quickly — Michal Hlavatý converted a penalty in the 68th minute to reduce the deficit. The equalizer came just in time, in the 89th minute, when 21-year-old forward Lukáš Mašek scored on his Slovan Liberec debut to complete the comeback at 3–3.
Next up, Slovan Liberec will host FK Pardubice next Sunday in their first home game of the season.
