Slovácko saw off Velká Bíteš 2-1 in the Cup Round of 64 on August 26th, with the visitors finding a way through despite the hosts' early advantage. T. Kostadinov opened the scoring for Velká Bíteš in the 37th minute, but P. Pfeffer and A. Dolznikov struck after the interval to turn the tie around. By then Slovácko had played the second half a man up, though there were no dismissals — just relentless pressure.
The opening goal came from Kostadinov's finish in the 37th minute, a moment that caught the opposition off guard. Slovácko responded immediately at the break with three changes: A. Marinelli, A. Macek and M. Pelan all came on. And here's the thing — they didn't wait long before finding their equaliser through Pfeffer in the 54th minute.
Velká Bíteš held firm for another half-hour before Dolznikov's 85th-minute strike put the result beyond doubt. The hosts made several substitutions in a bid to get back into the game, bringing on G. Niarchos, P. Ndubuisi and even Kostadinov himself in the 64th minute. To be fair, they ran out of ideas as the clock wound down.
The statistics told the story of a match Slovácko controlled without necessarily dominating every phase. They registered 194 attacks against 75, took 12 corners to two, and held 70 per cent possession. Yet Velká Bíteš managed three shots on target and scored first — cup football has its own rules. Slovácko's five shots on target yielded two goals; the hosts' three produced one.
Both sides received yellow cards in stoppage time, P. Halouska and T. Mrna both cautioned at 90+4'. Velká Bíteš arrived with momentum after a 2-0 victory over Humpolec on August 12th, while Slovácko came off a 1-2 defeat to Mladá Boleslav four days earlier. By then the visitors had already shown they could bounce back from setbacks.