FC Copenhagen Cruise past Debrecen to take firm control of conference league tie

FC Copenhagen moved to the brink of the Conference League playoff round after claiming a commanding 3-0 victory over Debreceni VSC in the first leg of their third qualifying round tie on Thursday.

The Danish champions produced a disciplined and clinical display in Hungary, making the most of their chances to secure a comfortable advantage ahead of next week’s return leg at Parken Stadium.

Goals from Gabriel Pereira, Robert and Andreas Cornelius handed Bo Svensson’s side a deserved win, putting them in a strong position to progress to the next stage of the competition.

Despite opening the new campaign unbeaten, FC Copenhagen have struggled to hit top form in both the Danish Superliga and Conference League qualifiers. Those concerns initially continued in Debrecen as the Hungarian hosts made the brighter start and controlled the early exchanges.

Debreceni VSC applied pressure during the opening 15 minutes and came close to testing goalkeeper Dominik Kotarski on several occasions, while Copenhagen found it difficult to play through the home side’s high press.

However, the momentum shifted midway through the first half.

Following a well-delivered corner from Marcos Lopez, Gabriel Pereira climbed highest inside the penalty area to head FC Copenhagen into the lead after 20 minutes. The breakthrough immediately settled the visitors and gave them greater control of the contest.

The Danish side doubled their advantage before half-time thanks to an eye-catching finish from Robert. After a defensive clearance fell kindly into his path, the Brazilian reacted brilliantly, throwing himself at the bouncing ball with an acrobatic effort that deflected over the goalkeeper and into the net to make it 2-0.

The second half followed a similar pattern, with FC Copenhagen controlling the game without creating a flood of opportunities. Andreas Cornelius had two excellent chances to extend the lead late on but was initially denied.

The experienced striker eventually got his reward in stoppage time. Meeting a pinpoint corner from Mohamed Elyounoussi, Cornelius powered a header into the back of the net to complete a convincing 3-0 victory and leave Debreceni VSC with a huge task in next week’s second leg.

The result gives FC Copenhagen one foot in the Conference League playoff round as they look to finish the job in front of their home supporters in Copenhagen.