Motor Lublin beats Radomiak 3:2 in Radom as Simon scores in added time

Coaching debut and pre-match context

Radomiak Radom entered the Monday fixture 15th in the PKO BP Ekstraklasa table with eight points, while Motor Lublin sat 16th with six. The hosts had changed coach during the season: Tomasz Kaczmarek left after eight matches for Raków Częstochowa, Rafał Grzyb took charge for two games, and John Carver made his debut after the international break. Sportowe Fakty noted that Carver previously coached Lechia Gdańsk and was responsible for the club's relegation from PKO Ekstraklasa. Motor kept Mariusz Misiura in charge, and the Lublin side had not won a league match since 16 August, when it beat GKS Katowice.

Koperski's opener and a disallowed goal

Motor controlled the early phase but could not turn its territory into a goal. Kamil Lukoszek forced an early save from Filip Majchrowicz, and a tap-in by Mbaye N'Diaye was ruled out for offside before the half hour after Makan Aiko's pass. Radomiak took the lead in the 24th minute. Rafał Wolski delivered a corner, Fernand Goure extended it with his head, and Filip Koperski finished from close range.

Bartosz Bereszyński spoke to Canal+ Sport at half-time and said:

Balls played to the near post are always dangerous. You only have to touch them lightly, they change their trajectory and then they are hard to predict.

He added that Motor had conceded again from a set piece and that the team was losing 0:1 despite creating half-chances in a game where it seemed to have the upper hand.

Second-half turnaround

Motor came out stronger after the break. N'Diaye equalised in the 53rd minute with a shot from outside the box, after an interception and a pass from Makan Aiko. In the 70th minute Karol Czubak put Motor ahead 2:1 from the penalty spot. Referee Tomasz Kwiatkowski awarded the kick for a foul by Steve Kingue on Czubak, and Czubak took the penalty himself. Kingue headed Radomiak level at 2:2 in the 80th minute, his first appearance of the season. The decisive moment came from a corner taken by Fabio Ronaldo, whose delivery Koperski unintentionally deflected, allowing Christopher Simon to score from close range in the third minute of added time.

Result and what it means

Motor won 3:2 and collected its second league win of the season, its first since 16 August. Radomiak were missing Conrado and Zie Ouatarry, while Ivo Rodrigues had not recovered in time to start for Motor. Rony Lopes made his first start in the Motor line-up, according to Kurier Lubelski. Both clubs had been on the edge of the relegation zone before kick-off, and Simon's goal settled a match in which Motor had led twice.