Zbrojovka Brno vs Podbrezová

Manager Martin Svědík's side controlled the opening exchanges on a rain-soaked pitch in Rosice, holding possession and limiting Podbrezová to sporadic forays into the final third. The first clear chance arrived in the 27th minute when Vachoušek's incisive through ball sent Rymarenko clean through, only for goalkeeper Trnovský to deny him with a reflex save. Podbrezová responded immediately — Mrvaljević's low drive from the edge of the box forced Hrdina into a corner.

The deadlock was broken in the 36th minute. Klíma's corner kick found Kaka at the far post, and the defender powered a header past Trnovský for his first goal of pre-season. Zbrojovka pushed for a second before half-time: Zmrhal's cross was met by a team-mate whose effort struck the crossbar in the 43rd minute, and Vašulín fired straight at Trnovský after a three-on-two break created by Rymarenko.

The second half followed a similar pattern — Zbrojovka dictating play without full throttle — and the reward came in the 66th minute. Substitute Dante, on the pitch for barely a minute, delivered a pinpoint cross to the far post where Daniel Vašulín rose to head home and double the lead.

Čavoš rattled the right post from distance in the 84th minute, and Podbrezová's best response came deep into stoppage time when Deml's long-range effort was parried by Hrdina.

Dante's introduction in the 64th minute — part of a triple substitution alongside Gjorgievski and Vaníček — proved decisive within 120 seconds. His first meaningful involvement, a floated cross to the back post, was met by Vašulín's header to make it 2-0. The goal killed any hope of a Podbrezová response and allowed Zbrojovka to manage the closing half-hour with comfort.

Kaka (Zbrojovka Brno) — The central defender opened the scoring with a commanding far-post header from a corner and anchored a back line that kept a clean sheet against a side that had scored in all four previous H2H meetings. Player of the match.

Daniel Vašulín (Zbrojovka Brno) — The forward was a persistent threat throughout and got his reward with a well-taken 66th-minute header, his second goal of pre-season after also scoring against Prostějov on 23 June.

Dante (Zbrojovka Brno) — On the pitch for only 26 minutes but provided the game's most telling moment with the assist for Vašulín's goal, delivering a quality cross within seconds of coming on as a substitute.

The 2-0 scoreline flattered neither side. Zbrojovka's first-half chances — the Rymarenko one-on-one, Kaka's goal and the crossbar effort — reflected clear superiority before the break. Podbrezová managed only the Mrvaljević shot and Deml's late attempt as meaningful threats, a sharp contrast to the H2H history where both teams had scored in every previous meeting (100% BTTS rate across four fixtures). The clean sheet was Zbrojovka's first against Podbrezová in the fixture's five-match history.

Zbrojovka close their pre-season schedule with three wins from five friendlies (4-1 vs Prostějov, 3-0 vs Nyíregyháza, 2-1 vs Csíkszereda, 0-2 vs Hartberg, 2-0 vs Podbrezová). The real business begins on 25 July 2026 when they host Sparta Praha at ShipEx Aréna in the opening round of the Chance Liga, kick-off 20:00 local time.

For Podbrezová, the match was another pre-season test ahead of the 2026/27 Niké Liga campaign. The Slovak side remain winless in pre-season friendlies against Czech opposition this summer.

A controlled, professional performance from Svědík's side in testing conditions. The defensive solidity — a clean sheet after the H2H history suggested goals at both ends — and the impact of the bench (Dante's immediate assist) were the most encouraging signs ahead of the Sparta Praha opener. Kaka's goal from a corner also suggests set-piece threat will be a weapon in the league season.