Ludogorets with 10th consecutive win

Ludogorets recorded the 10th consecutive winafter the return of Ivaylo Petev. It came after a 2:0 success over Botev Pd in front of around 15,000 spectators at the College. The Eagles pulled 4 points ahead of the second CSKA, and today the Reds host Botev Vratsa. In addition, the Greens also became champions in the regular season, which means that they will host Sasha Ilitch's team in the second round of the playoffs and avoid another visit of Bulgarian Army.

Caio Vidal and Igor Thiago scored the goals for the people of Razgrad in the first half. It is curious that since the "Hristo Botev" stadium was opened, only Brazilians have scored on it - Ricardinho from Levski, as well as Vidal and Thiago from Ludogorets.

In the composition of the guests, Petev brought back among the starters Olivier Verdon, Jakub Piotrowski, Spas Delev and Caio Vidal.

Before the start of the match, a tribute was paid to the legend of Botev Plovdiv - Trifon Pachev. Otherwise, already in the 2nd minute, the meeting was interrupted because of the smoke that spread over the field after the pyroshow.
Ludogorets tried to keep the ball under control, but the first shot came from Dylan Mertens, who after a ricochet was caught by Sergio Padt. Shortly before that, Igor Thiago tried to head in, but was pushed by Antoine Baroin and couldn't shoot. In the 19th minute, the visitors made a sustained attack. First, Despodov was blocked, and then Pipa would, but in an out. In the 22nd minute, Spas Delev tried his aim, but it was also not accurate. Then it got hot on the pitch. James Eto'o headbutted Kiril Despodov, who fell to the ground. Although the guests wanted a red card for the Cameroonian, the referee Georgi Ginchev gave him a yellow card.

Ludogorets took the lead in the 27th minute. Then Kiril Despodov made an excellent break from the right and crossed, the ball ended up in the left wing Caio Vidal, who with a nice shot from the air did not leave any chances to Hidayet Hankic.

Ludogorets led 2:0 in the 44th minute. Claude Gonsalves crossed softly for Igor Thiago, who outpaced Samuel Suprajen and headed home his 13th goal of the season.

At the break, dissatisfied with what was shown in the first 45 minutes, Bruno Baltazar made a double substitution. He took James Eto'o and Samuel Akere off and replaced them with Amadou Dumbuya and Pa Konate.

Ludogorets could have put an end to the sport in the 48th minute. Then Caio Vidal brought Kirill Despodov face to face with goalkeeper Hankic. He overcame it and attempted a technical shot, but it missed the target. The "yellow and black" answered with a good shot by Krasian Kolev, but he was not accurate either.

The match was then stopped again briefly due to the new portion of pyroshow that the home fans put on. Then Bruno Balthazar had to make a forced substitution. Amadou Doumbouya, who entered shortly before, left the game and was replaced by Abdoulaye Traore.

After an hour of play, Botev Plovdiv was very close to a goal. After a corner kick, Antonio Perera shot from point-blank range, but the crossbar saved the Razgrad people. Another excellent opportunity followed for the hosts. Abdoulaye Traore found himself in a goal-scoring situation but was stopped by Sergio Padt.

In the 69th minute, Igor Thiago failed to take advantage of a mistake in the home team's defense, shooting over the goal. In the reverse attack, Plovdiv asked for a penalty for contact between Jakub Piotrowski and Nikolay Minkov, but it was not awarded. Another opportunity followed for the Eagles, but Kiril Despodov's shot next to the crossbar. In the 77th minute, Igor Thiago made a big mistake. Caio Vidal broke well down the right and crossed on the ground, substitute Gustavo Nonato left for his Brazilian teammate, who did the trick and missed the target.