The 23-year-old Armenian winger of DVSC, Zhirayr Shaghoyan received a call-up to his home country’s national team. On October 10, the Armenian national team will play in Faroe Islands in the UEFA Nations League, while on October 13, they will clash with North-Macedonia in Yerevan.
Zhirayr Shaghoyan has already made 14 appearances in the Armenian national team and scored 1 goal.
On Saturday evening, Loki played against Nyíregyháza in the new Városi Stadium. For the fans, it was the most anticipated clash of the autumn season. Due to the classic derby, there was a full stadium and the two teams faced each other after a decade in the first division. More than 1000 fans from Debrecen travelled to Nyíregyháza to cheer for the team. It was the first league match of the new coaching staff, led by Csaba Máté, during which the coach could not count on Erik Kusnyir, Thor Úlfarsson and Bence Batik. All the other players were part of the squad and the starting line-up was the same as the one against Békéscsaba.
The match started in a frenetic atmosphere and in the first minutes, both teams played in a cautious manner. Loki then took control of the game and in the 8th minute, even took the lead. After Dzsudzsák’s corner-kick, Márk Szécsi’s shot deflected, but Jorgo Pellumbi collected the ball and shot it into the right side of the goal from a sharp angle (0-1).
After the goal, Megyeri had to deny Kovácsréti’s shot as the home team quickly tried to equalize. There were a lot of duels, the match was good with several chances. In the 19th minute, Dominik Kocsis’ shot was blocked within the box, then Nyíregyháza equalized. In the 23rd minute, after a right-sided cross on the long side, Barnabás Nagy arrived and fired the ball under the bar (1-1).
Until the break, both teams had some chances, while the fight sharpened. In the 36th minute, the home team scored one more goal: Navratil broke away on the right side, he dribbled inside, then shot and the ball deflected off a defender and dropped into the net (2-1). In the 45th minute, Balázs Dzsudzsák fired a shot from 19 meters, but Tóth made a brilliant save and punched it above the bar. Thus, the team went on halftime with Nyíregyháza leading.
Brandon Domingues came on for the second half and Loki tried to press the home team, but meanwhile, the opponent was also dangerous. We were dominating, but could not create bigger chances. Thirty minutes before the end, Arandjel Stojkovic and Botond Vajda came off the bench. However, in the 65th minute, Nyíregyháza scored another goal: Navratil freely went inside the box, he passed Balázs Megyeri and scored from close-range (3-1).
From that point on, it was very hard and in the meanwhile, Neven Djurasek and Yacouba Silue came on. In the 78th minute, DVSC was awarded a penalty as a defender touched the ball with his hands within the box after Donát Bárány’s header. Balázs Dzsudzsák converted the penalty (3-2), so the endgame promised to be exciting.
In the final minutes, both teams gave everything they could, however, the result did not change and it ended in a defeat.
The next match will be next Saturday against MTK at Nagyerdei Stadium.
According to the coach
Krisztián Tímár: It was a tough match, which we expected. The team reacted well when the opponent took the lead, showing that we are resilient. We had more chances, so anyway we had to win this game.
Csaba Máté: The match started well. We took the lead and could have doubled our advantage, but we made mistakes, which were not acceptable at this level. It’s hard to win a game with such mistakes. We understand that the fans are disappointed.
OTP Bank Liga, round 7.
Nyíregyháza-DVSC 3-2 (2-1).
Nyíregyháza, 8000 spectators. Referee: Berke B.
Nyíregyháza: Tóth B. – Baki, Gengeliczki, Jokic (Keresztes, 73.) – Navratil (Pinte, 84.), Keita, Toma (Kvekveskiri, 84.), Nagy B. – Kovácsréti, Nagy D. (Gresó, 76.) – Eppel (Ramos, 46.). Head coach: Krisztián Tímár.
DVSC: Megyeri – Kocsis G. (Stojkovic, 63.), Dreskovic, Pellumbi, Ferenczi (Silue, 73.) – Lagator (Djurasek, 73.), Dzsudzsák – Kocsis D. (Domingues, 46.), Szűcs T., Szécsi (Vajda, 63.) – Bárány. Head coach: Csaba Máté.
Goal: Nagy B. (23.), Navratil (36., 65.) as well as Pellumbi (8.), Dzsudzsák (79. – from penalty).
Yellow card: Toma (32.), Kovácsréti (45+1.), Keita (77.), Gresó (84.) as well as Dreskovic (61.), Silue (88.).
On Sunday evening, DVSC clashed with the second-division Békéscsaba away for a spot among the top 32 in the MOL Hungarian Cup. It was the first competitive match of the new coaching staff, led by Csaba Máté. The head coach could not on Erik Kusnyir and Thor Úlfarsson, who were still doing the rehabilitation. Due to injury and disease, Bence Batik, Botond Vajda and Brandon Domingues were also out of the squad. Our team faced the battle on the heavy pitch with the support of several hundred Debrecen fans.
At the beginning of the match, Loki took control of the game and in the 3rd minute, Balázs Dzsudzsák found himself in a scoring position, but the ball bounced in front of him, so he couldn’t strike it well. In the 5th minute, Balázs Megyeri made a brilliant save to deny a close-range header. Then, DVSC took the lead! After Balázs Dzsudzsák’s corner-kick in the 10th minute, there was some turmoil, but Donát Bárány was alert and scored from 6 meters (0-1).
Our team maintained the dominance in the following minutes as well. In the 18th minute, Márk Szécsi shot just wide off the goal, just like Donát Bárány did not long after that. However, in the 26th minute, Balázs Dzsudzsák didn’t miss the target: he scored a beautiful free-kick goal into the left side of the net from 25 meters and thus, doubled the advantage of Loki (0-2). After that, the game was more about duels and no further goals were scored until the break.
The second half started with Donát Bárány’s shot, which was saved by Póser. The home team also tried create some opportunities, but Loki controlled the game. In the 54th minute, Donát Bárány could have scored, but he missed the target from close-range. Nevertheless, in the 56th minute, he didn’t miss the opportunity! Our striker arrived in the perfect moment to meet a cross from the left side and headed the ball into the net from the edge of the six-yard box (0-3). Thus, the qualification of DVSC to the next round was decided, but our team didn’t stop attacking. During one of our attacks, Dominik Kocsis was fouled inside the box. In the 64th minute, Donát Bárány converted the penalty and scored a hat-trick (0-4).
Soma Szuhodovszki and Victor Braga came on as substitute for the final minutes. Not long after, Neven Djurasek, Yacouba Silue and Arandjel Stojkovic also came on. DVSC confidently won and went through in the cup. The next match will be against Nyíregyháza next Saturday in the championship.
According to the coach
Sándor Csató: Congratulations to Debrecen. We did our best, but we need to improve our defence and be more effective in converting our chances.
Csaba Máté: I’m really happy for the victory. Most of the things on the pitch happened according to our will. We wanted to create chances and score goals, and we succeeded in doing so.
Mol Hungarian Cup, round 3.
Békéscsaba-DVSC 0-4 (0-2).
Békéscsaba, 2500 spectators. Referee: Bogár G.
Békéscsaba: Póser – Komáromi (Maronyai, 65.), Kovács G., Szabó B., Tóth M., Vólent (Sármány, 58.), Szatmári (Pelles, 58.), Mikló, Kuzma, Albert, Czékus (Zádori, 76.). Head coach: Csató Sándor.
DVSC: Megyeri – Kocsis G., Dreskovic (Stojkovic, 80.), Pellumbi, Ferenczi – Lagator (Victor Braga, 67.), Dzsudzsák (Djurasek, 77.) – Kocsis D. (Szuhodovszki, 67.), Szűcs T., Szécsi – Bárány (Silue, 77.). Head coach: Máté Csaba.
Goal: Bárány (10., 56., 64.-from penalty)), Dzsudzsák (26.).
Yellow card: Szatmári (25.), Tóth M. (60.), Mikló (74.) as well as Lagator (24.).
DVSC signed Gergő Kocsis, who was a regular player of MTK in the previous season. The 30-year-old player can be deployed both as a defender and a defensive midfielder. He has significant experience, with nearly 200 appearances in the first division, and has tested himself in the leagues of different countries.
Gergő Kocsis was raised at the youth teams of MTK and moved to Germany at a young age, first to Stuttgart, then to Ausburg, before making his debut in the Hungarian first division in the colours of Videoton. The multiple-time youth international, who has also been called up to the senior national team, later played for Puskás Akadémia, Diósgyőr, ZTE and Mezőkövesd. He also played abroad at the Slovakian DAC, the Czech Karviná and the Polish Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała.
“I’m glad for this opportunity and I’m also excited as I continue my career at a really serious team and one of the most prestigious Hungarian clubs. I hope that we will be successful together. I think that I will easily fit into the team as I already know many players from the national teams. I believe that I will be able to help the team in defense. Ferencváros is the favourite in the championship this year as well, but a team like Loki will not go onto the pitch with a white flag against them. We have to give our best and I would be happy if we could participate in international cups,” said Gergő Kocsis to dvsc.hu.
Welcome to DVSC!
Several players of DVSC are currently struggling with minor injuries. On Thursday’s training, Márk Szécsi and Dusan Lagator accidentally collided with their heads and both had to have their wounds stitched up. They are feeling better now, but will have to miss a few training sessions. Botond Vajda and Arandjel Stojkovic are also missing because of some minor problems, but hopefully, they can join the team next week.
Bence Batik, who delievered an outstanding performance during the 3-1 victory against ZTE, suffered a plantar fascia injury in one of the training sessions. His recovery is expected to take a few weeks. Erik Kusnyir and Thor Úlfarsson are still doing the rehabilitation.
DVSC introduced the new head coach Csaba Máté during a press conference on Tuesday. His contract is valid until the end of season 2025/2026 with an option of a one-year prolongation.
The 54-year-old professional, who was born in Szekszárd, played in teams, such as Tatabánya and the Belgian KV Kortrijk. He started his coaching career in Szekszárd. From 2008 to 2010, he was an assistant coach next to Erwin Koeman at the national team, then worked for Haladás and Paks, also as a caretaker manager in the latter one.
From 2012 to 2023, he was a staff member at Ferencváros and worked together with coaches like Ricardo Moniz, Thomas Doll, Peter Stöger and Stanislav Cherchesov. He has been appointed as a head coach on an interim basis several times and last year, he led the team to the group stage of the Conference League.
Roland Máté, who had been working earlier with youth teams at Ferencváros, is going to be a member of Csaba Máté’s staff, together with the legendary former player of DVSC, László Éger, who became champion with Loki in 2005 and 2006.
At the press conference, Balázs Makray, the managing director of DVSC Futball Zrt., emphasized that all decisions are made in accordance with the interests of the club. That’s how it happened this time as well.
“The last 2 years are considered to be a successful period in the life of DVSC. Based on the points earned, Srdjan Blagojevic was one of the most successful foreign coaches in the club’s history, and we thank him for everything. However, in recent times, we could feel that we were not moving forward and felt a need for change on the bench. We believe that it is time for the team to have a Hungarian coach again, someone, who is also experienced on the international stage. Csaba Máté was the first on our list and we were glad that he accepted our offer. We believe that he is an excellent choice, who aligns with our goals,” said Balázs Makray.
Csaba Máté mentioned that events unfolded quite quickly, and at the time of being approached by DVSC, he had an offer from abroad as well, but he is glad that an agreement was reached with Loki.
“It is an honour to work in Debrecen, a city with a team that has won multiple championships, a true stronghold of football. I understand the importance of featuring homegrown players, but results are also crucial. Debrecen is a place with strong local pride, and we arrived here bearing this in mind, along with my staff, including the Debrecen legend László Éger and my son, Roland Máté, who has been working with the youth teams at FTC for a long time. Tibor Dombi and János Balogh will ceirtanly remain with the staff, ensuring continuity. I hope that we will be successful,” stated Csaba Máté.
Bence Batik, who had been missing because of an injury, played his first game in the colours of DVSC. The summer signing of Loki was among the starting XI against Zalaegerszeg and contributed to the 3-1 victory of the team with his great play.
“The previous week was the first week, when I could fully train with the team, so it was questionable whether I will play or not. After all, I got an opportunity to be among the starting XI and I’m very glad to have made my debut in DVSC in such a match,” said Bence Batik, who was out for almost two and a half months.
“I felt bad because I couldn’t help my teammates, but I tried to support them both mentally and physically. Obviously, it feels completely different to put on my boots and go onto the pitch as a member of the starting line-up, so I’m really happy that my career in Debrecen started with a victory. In spite of the early goal, we dominated and had more chances. The opponent’s goalkeeper performed several feats, for example, when he saved my header or Szecska’s shot . I’m proud of the team because during the whole 90 minutes, everybody could feel what we want to achieve. It was a memorable moment, when Tibi Dombi sent a message saying that he threw me in at the deep end. How did I react? Thank you Tibi, fortunately, I can swim,” ended Batik with a smile.
After the successful Match Day Festival and family day, DVSC played a special game against Zalaegerszeg at Nagyerdei Stadium. Srdjan Blagojevic has already left the club, while the new coach, Csaba Máté hasn’t been on the bench yet, so Tibor Dombi and his staff led the team. Although many players suffered from injuries, everyone was part of the squad, except Erik Kusnyir and Thor Úlfarsson, who were still doing the rehabilitation. Eight Hungarian players were among the starting XI, including Bence Batik, who debuted in Loki, Soma Szuhodovszki, Márk Szécsi and Donát Bárány, who had recovered from his injury.
The match was preceded by festive moments. Fifteen years ago, DVSC won the Hungarian Cup, the first big trophy in the life of the club. In 1999, Loki won 2-1 against Tatabánya in the cup final, which took place in Vác. There were 12,000 fans on site, most of them Debrecen supporters, who created an incredible atmosphere. The heroes of Loki from 25 years ago were honoured by our club management before the match. On behalf of the team, the legendary players of Loki, the multiple-champion and cup winner Zoltán Böőr, and Zsolt Vadicska, who scored the winning goal in the cup final, took the kick-off. Meldin Dreskovic, our Montenegrin defender, was also greeted at the beginning of the match on the occasion of his 50th appearance in the colours of DVSC.
At the beginning of the match, DVSC quickly took control of the game. In the 2nd minute, the goalkeeper of ZTE saved Arandjel Stojkovic’s shot. However, in the 5th minute, ZTE took the lead: after a headed pass, Dénes shot the ball under the crossbar from the edge of the goal area (0-1). In the 13th minute, Dénes had one more dangerous situation, but he headed just wide off the goal. It was followed by several home attacks, but no bigger chances were created.
After the water break, Loki still dominated. In the 29th minute, after Balázs Dzsudzsák’s shot, the goalkeeper could only punch the ball away, but our team could not convert the rebound. In the 37th minute, Gundel-Takács made a brilliant save to deny the header of Bence Batik, then in the 39th minute, he performed another feat and saved Márk Szécsi’s powerful shot. The score stayed 0-1 until half-time.
At the beginning of the second half, our team maintained its dominance, while ZTE scored an offside goal. In the 50th minute, Dusan Lagator hit the crossbar from long-range. The equalizer came in the 54th minute: Donát Bárány was fouled within the box and Balázs Dzsudzsák converted the justifiable penalty (1-1).
In the 56th minute, Tamás Szűcs shot just wide off the goal and Loki led several attacks. Finally, we took the lead! In the 65th minute, Balázs Dzsudzsák gave a nice pass to János Ferenczi, who scored a goal from 7 meters (2-1).
DVSC could have scored several goals during the final minutes. After all, Loki scored one more: after another great pass of Balázs Dzsudzsák, Brandon Domingues, who came on as a substitute, dribbled out everyone and used the clear-cut chance. Thus, the match ended with a beautiful and memorable victory for Loki. The next match will be a cup game next week in Békéscsaba.
Reactions of the coaches
Tibor Dombi: We didn’t play bad in the first half, maybe we were a bit too excited. The goal that we conceded was against the run of play, but we equalized after the break. Our opponent broke and we did a comeback. I was expecting a dynamic play, which I got, so we did everything.
Gábor Márton: Congratulations to Debrecen on the victory.
OTP Bank Liga, round 6.
DVSC-ZTE 3-1 (0-1).
Nagyerdei Stadium, 5072 spectators. Referee: Rúsz M.
DVSC: Megyeri – Stojkovic, Batik, Pellumbi, Ferenczi – Lagator, Szűcs T. (Victor Braga, 89.) – Szuhodovszki (Shaghoyan, 89.), Dzsudzsák, Szécsi (Domingues, 86.) – Bárány (Silue, 81.). Interim coach: Dombi Tibor.
ZTE: Gundel-Takács – Szendrei N., Safronov (Evangelou, 59.), Várkonyi, Medgyes, Mim – Bakti (Németh D., 59.), Sankovic, Kiss B. – Sajbán M. (Spoljaric, 81.), Dénes (Nyíri, 71.). Head coach: Márton Gábor.
Goal: Dzsudzsák (54., 11-esből), Ferenczi (65.), Domingues (96.) as well as Dénes (5.).
Yellow card: Szécsi (61.), Pellumbi (63.), Domingues (96.) as well as Sankovic (21.), Várkonyi (51.), Evangelou (87.).
From September 1, Csaba Máté is going to be the head coach of DVSC. The 54-year-old professional, who was born in Szekszárd, played in teams, such as Tatabánya and the Belgian KV Kortrijk. He started his coaching career in Szekszárd. From 2008 to 2010, he was an assistant coach next to Erwin Koeman at the national team, then worked for Haladás and Paks, also as a caretaker manager in the latter one.
From 2012 to 2023, he was a staff member at Ferencváros and worked together with coaches like Ricardo Moniz, Thomas Doll, Peter Stöger and Stanislav Cherchesov.
He has been appointed as a head coach on an interim basis several times and last year led the team to the group stage of the Conference League.
The new head coach of DVSC will be introduced during a press conference at the beginning of next week.
DVSC will host Zalaegerszeg at Nagyerdei Stadium, starting from 17.45 on Saturday. Tibor Dombi will lead the team in this match, so he gave an interview as the caretaker manager of Loki.
– The most important thing is to win on Saturday. After a managerial change, this is the best medication. We’ve been trying to shake up the guys up with fewer restrictions this week. We’ve had one-on-one conversations with several players, focusing on encouraging them to enjoy the game. I told them that they’re living the best time of their lives as long as they are actively playing, so they have to appreciate it every day. Two years ago, I already had to take charge of the team as the caretaker manager. Then, we won 1-0 against Fehérvár and now I would be again satisfied with such a result – said Tibor Dombi.
The Hungarian U21 national team will play an international preparation match and one European Championship qualifier at the beginning of September. The outstanding player of DVSC, Botond Vajda received a call-up to the national team as well as the talented Tamás Szűcs, who will be a backup player.
International preparation match
5 September 2024, 17:45
Hungary – Slovakia
Új Hidegkuti Nándor Stadium
UEFA European Championship qualifier
10 September 2024, 17:45
Hungary-Spain
Széktói Stadium, Kecskemét
As it is known, there was a managerial change in the football club of DVSC at the beginning of this week. After Srdjan Blagojevic’s departure, Tibor Dombi is going to lead the team during the match against ZTE. Our captain Balázs Dzsudzsák talked about the recent period.
“Unfortunately, we went through an eventful week. There is no good time for a managerial change, but after a basically good start of the season, our performance against Újpest culminated in something that cannot be accepted neither by the team nor the fans. Immediately after the final whistle, we had a straightforward conversation with the ultras, who asked for nothing more than a Debrecen that fights tooth and nail and does everything for success,” said Balázs Dzsudzsák, who also addressed the news that appeared in the press.
“Usually, both parties are to blame in case of a managerial change, so it was not the decision of Balázs Dzsudzsák. I don’t owe an explanation, but we are talking about a more than 120-year-old club, which deserves respect. Probably, this article was written by someone, who has never been to a Loki match and just wanted to kick the team that is already down. We have a serious club management that understands the weight of a such a decision. I could say somewhat cynically that I appreciate it that someone thinks I’m the one who decides about the coach, but it’s obviously not the case. I feel like I have done much more for Loki than to deserve such attacks. For nearly 14 years, almost always as a captain, I’ve always been trying to help all of the coaches for the sake of the team’s performance and success. The club also deserves respect and no one should start an avalanche like this.”
Finally, Balázs Dzsudzsák added that mentally the team is getting better from day to day.
“During the past two years, we’ve been practicing tactical elements that are hard to change now. Neither the players nor Tibi Dombi is in an easy situation, but I can feel that everyone wants to put aside our failure against Újpest. It has been mentioned a lot of times that our dressing room is strong and sticks together, so now we have to move a step forward and hold together even more. We are the only ones, who can solve this. We are working to ensure that the fans see a team on Saturday that gives it their all, fighting with complete humility and heart.”
