The football team of DVSC had a great season as it finished third on the table by defeating Újpest and earned international cup participation. Despite his smaller injury, our 23-year-old defender, Erik Kusnyír showed a great and balanced performance during the championship. In the rankings of Nemzeti Sport, Erik Kusnyír was nominated as the best right-back and got into the team of the season, while in the overall list, he occupied the 10^th place. Firstly, we asked Erik about the final game of the season.

• Of course, we knew how much was at stake and unwittingly there was a pressure on the team but we also felt that we had to keep the three points at home in order to reach our goals. The atmosphere at Nagyerdei Stadium was fantastic, it felt great to step onto the pitch in front of 14 thousand fans at such an important fixture. Before the first whistle, I didn’t know that it’s going to be my 100^th game in the ranks of DVSC but the management greeted me during the dinner after the match, which cranked up my mood even further. I’m proud that I could reach this number in the colors of Loki and I’m really grateful to the club as well as my coaches.

If we consider the whole season, it was quite uneven. Sometimes the team was fighting to avoid relegation but at the end of the championship, the goals were totally different…

• Indeed, last year was like a rollercoaster but I need to highlight the arrival of Srdjan Blagojevic, who had a really positive effect on the team. We immediately had to get into the rhythm, we stepped onto the pitch with a new tactic and principles. Our head coach has great merit in the fact that ever since he arrived, we have been at the top of the table.

Even though you had to skip several fixtures because of two serious ankle injuries, you were still a regular player. How do you evaluate your own performance?

• Unfortunately, I’m not lucky regarding these injuries, each season I have some problems, which make me fall out for shorter or longer periods of time. After my recovery, I was able to get back in form quickly, and I would like to thank the Master for giving me opportunity to play after my injury. Both me and the whole team were playing great, we finished on the podium, so this championship was a positive experience from all aspects.

Finally, Erik Kusnyír told us about his excitement regarding the team’s opponent in the UEFA Conference League. – No matter of the opponent, I’m sure that there will be a full house at Nagyerdei Stadium and we definitely have to do everything in order to proceed to the next round.

DVSC head coach Srdjan Blagojevic celebrates his 50th birthday today! We wish him a good health, happiness and many more victories!

DVSC and Sylvain Deslandes part ways. The French defender’s contract expires on 30 June and he will continue his career at another club. The 26-year-old player joined Loki 2 years ago, he played 43 league matches and scored 2 goals. We wish Sylvain all the best in his future career!

Since the opening of Nagyerdei Stadium in 2014, the average number of spectators hasn’t been as high as it was during the latest championship. Compared to the previous season, the number of spectators has increased with more than 40% (on average, 3775 people were supporting Loki a year ago and now this number was about 5493). From this regard, DVSC is the second most popular team in Hungary after FTC. It is worth mentioning that Diósgyőr, as the champion of the second division, had 3833 viewers on average.

It is important to note that this number is outstanding not only compared to the previous season but the whole decade. The Nagyerdei Stadium opened its gates in the second half of the 2013/14 season and since then, the average number of spectators hasn’t reached even 4000. The apparent interest is not surprising as Loki is the most successful team in Hungary since the arrival of Srdjan Blagojevic, and this is also true if we consider the last 5, 10, 15 or 20 rounds. The rising viewership is really important and joyful, and the aim of the club is to further increase this number.

The average number of spectators in the last seasons of DVSC.

2014/15: 3803

2015/16: 3010

2016/17: 3407

2017/18: 3916

2018/19: 3543

2019/20: 3962

2021/22: 3775

2022/23: 5493

The 2020/21 season was not taken into consideration because of the pandemic. Source: magyarfutball.hu

Dorian Babunski has been called up again to the national team of North Macedonia. On June 16, the 26-year-old forward of DVSC is going to play against Ukraine in the European Championship qualifier, while on June 19, the clash will be against England. Dorian Babunski has already made 6 appearances in the national team of North Macedonia.

We congratulate our attacker on the latest national team call-up and wish him good luck for the upcoming matches!

Ferencváros decided to use its option right and signed a contract with Péter Baráth. During the spring season, the midfielder was playing at FTC on loan and now the club effectually bought his player right. We wish him good luck!

Stefan Loncar, the 27-year-old midfielder of DVSC, has been called up to the national team of Montenegro. He is going to play against Hungary in the European Championship qualifier on June 17, while on June 20, his home team counts on him at the preparation game against the Czech Republic. Stefan Loncar has already made 6 appearances for the national team of Montenegro.

Loki reached the final round of the 2022/23 Hungarian championship knowing that if they could win against Újpest at home in front of thousands of supporters and an incredible atmosphere, they would secure the bronze medal and return to the international stage after many years. The important clash was preceded by celebratory moments as Balázs Dzsudzsák, who was absent from the starting eleven due to a wrist fracture, received the Zilahi Award for the best player of the season for DVSC, while Debsport awarded Dorian Babunski for being the top scorer.

At the beginning of the match, the opponent’s goalkeeper saved Dusan Lagator’s slide, and then in the 12^th minute, Banai blocked Stefan Loncar’s shot. In the 15^th minute, Loki was awarded a free kick from 17 meters out but Ádám Bódi’s curling shot deflected off the defensive wall, after which the goalkeeper caught Kevin Varga’s second attempt. The pace was good, with both teams trying to press and attack each other.

In the second part of the first half, a fierce battle continued but then the goal came for Debrecen. In the 26^th minute, after János Ferenczi’s corner from the long side, Meldin Dreskovic headed the ball across the goal and Dusan Lagator, who made a run into the box, nodded it into the net from 6 meters out (1-0). So, the eagerly awaited lead was achieved, which our team managed to maintain until halftime. In fact, in the 39^th minute, Stefan Loncar almost doubled the lead but Banai saved it. It’s significant to note that the shots on target ratio in the first half was 7-0…

Márk Szécsi arrived for the second half, and in the 47^th minute, DVSC threatened with a shot from Ádám Bódi but the goalkeeper punched the ball away. The second Debrecen goal was brewing, but with only a one-goal lead, the team needed to stay focused. However, the second goal came soon enough! In the 53^rd minute, after a cross from the left side, Dorian Babunski headed towards goal, the goalkeeper of Újpest made a save but Christian Manrique made great use of the rebound (2-0).

In the 62^nd minute, Ádám Bódi narrowly missed again with a shot from 15 meters that just missed the bottom left corner. Loki played well and controlled the match, creating a great atmosphere in the stadium. In the final minutes, Alexandros Kyziridis and Antonio Mance came on as substitutes (followed by Balázs Dzsudzsák and Donát Bárány towards the end) and the audience celebrated the team.

The final minutes brought no more goals but DVSC confidently won against Újpest. The team earned the bronze medal and the right to participate in the Conference League. Great job guys!

OTP Bank Liga 33^rd round

DVSC-Újpest 2-0 (1-0).

Nagyerdei Stadium, 14 014 spectators. Referee: G. Bogár

DVSC: Megyeri – Kusnyír, Dreskovic, Romanchuk, Ferenczi – Lagator, Loncar (Dzsudzsák, 90.) – Varga K. (Szécsi, 46.), Manrique (Bárány, 90.), Bódi (Kyziridis, 80.) – Dorian Babunski (Mance, 80.). Head coach: Srdjan Blagojevic.

Újpest: Banai – Antzoulas, Diaby, Fehér Cs. (Kovács, 89.) – Pauljevic, Onovo, Boumal, Mörschel (Jevtovski, 57.), Antonov (Ambrose, 57.) – Goure (Simon, 57.), Csoboth. (Mucsányi, 77.) Head coach: Nebojsa Vignjevic.

Goal: Lagator (26.), Manrique (53.).

Yellow card: Kusnyír (56.), Lagator (86.), and Goure (18.), Pauljevic (20.), Diaby (73.).

DVSC extended the contract of Srdjan Blagojevic and his coaching staff (Sasa Semeredi, Dejan Fijala) for two more years, until 2025. The Serbian head coach signed for Loki at the end of September last year, and under his leadership, our team’s performance is excellent and it is becoming better and better. Since the arrival of Srdjan Blagojevic, DVSC has 14 victories, 5 draws and only 6 defeats in 25 championship games, so the team managed to get to the forefront.

The last, 33^rd round of the 2022/23 OTP Bank Liga is coming, in which DVSC, standing on the 3^rd place, will host Újpest at Nagyerdei Stadium, starting from 8 pm. on Saturday. According to ticket sales, there will be more than ten thousand spectators at the stadium. We welcome all the fans! The dress code is red. If Loki wins, the team will finish on the podium for sure and will participate in international cups. The head coach of our team, Srdjan Blagojevic talked about his expectations:

– It was before the game against Ferencváros when I first mentioned that we are fighting for the podium. We won against FTC and now we will continue our fight for the medal. At the same time, we are aware of the fact that a very difficult job is in front of us. Even though the season for Újpest hasn’t gone the way they expected, we are up against a very good team. We played against them two times this season, we had one victory and a draw. From these games, it became obvious that our opponent is really strong and, in some moments, we were also lucky. We are expecting a demanding game on Saturday. There’s pressure on the team but all of us dreamed about achieving this. We want to win!

DVSC extended the contract of Balázs Megyeri for 2+1 years. The 33-year-old goalkeeper has been defending the goal of Loki during 18 championship and 2 cup games this season, and he has a clean sheet regarding the last 5 matches (he didn’t play against FTC until the end).

The excellent goalkeeper has previously made his debut in the national team as well. He won a bronze medal in the U20 World Cup and has been a five-time Greek champion with Olympiacos.

Marco Rossi, the head coach of the Hungarian national football team, has announced the squad for the UEFA European Championship qualifiers in June. János Ferenczi, player of DVSC, has already been invited to the national team in March. Now, he is selected as member of the team again.

Part of the squad will start training on June 5 in Telki, while the whole team will gather a week later in the training center of MLSZ. On June 17, Marco Rossi’s team will play against Montenegro in Podgorica, and three days later, the team will host Lithuania in Puskás Arena.

The squad of the Hungarian national team for the fixtures in June:

GOALKEEPERS: Patrik Demjén (Zalaegerszegi TE FC), Dénes Dibusz (Ferencvárosi TC), Péter Szappanos (Bp. Honvéd)

DEFENDERS: Botond Balogh (Parma – Italy), Endre Botka (Ferencvárosi TC), Ádám Lang (Omonia – Cyprus), Willi Orbán (RB Leipzig – Germany), Attila Szalai (Fenerbahce – Turkey), Gábor Szalai (Kecskemét)

MIDFIELDERS: Bendegúz Bolla (Grasshoppers – Switzerland), János Ferenczi (DVSC), Milos Kerkez (AZ – Netherlands), László Kleinheisler (Panathinaikosz – Greece), Ádám Nagy (Pisa – Italy), Loic Nego (Mol Fehérvár FC), Callum Styles (Millwall)

FORWARDS: Martin Ádám (Ulszan Hyundai – South-Korea), Kevin Csoboth (Újpest FC), Dániel Gazdag (Philadelphia Union – USA), Roland Sallai (SC Freiburg – Germany), Dominik Szoboszlai (RB Leipzig – Germany), Barnabás Varga (Paksi FC)