FCK beat Kolding in Cup first leg
F.C. Copenhagen will take a 3-1 aggregate lead into the reverse tie of their Danish Cup quarter-final with Kolding IF after securing victory on the road on Saturday.
Thomas Delaney put the Lions a goal up within nine minutes, with William Clem doubling the lead before half time.
Amin Chiakha made it 3-0 with 15 minutes remaining and, while Asker Beck clawed one back for the hosts, Lions head coach Jacob Neestrup was pleased with the day's outcome.
"There is still work to be done but we have got ourselves a good starting point on a pitch that was extremely difficult," says the boss.
"We won by two goals at a place where it has been very difficult for many other teams, both in the cup in recent years but also in the First Division. Kolding are currently the team in the top two divisions that give away the fewest chances, and you just have to respect that.
"They also created an intense situation for the match, which the underdog can do in a cup tournament. These are difficult conditions when we also take the pitch into account. But we are satisfied with the result. Of course we have to finish the work in Parken next Sunday, but first we will focus on the Conference League on Thursday."
Clem made a splash with his long-range goal, which was his first for FCK in the senior team – and Neestrup was satisfied with his overall performance.
"Clem played a good game when we had control of the ball. While there's some second-ball play and challenges that he has to master, he played a good game again."
Kevin Diks also missed a penalty for the first time in his FCK career, only for Chiakha to quickly follow up and score.
"It's like with Diogo in his time, when you finally miss one it's important we have someone to score on the rebound," says the boss. "I also told Kevin afterwards that it counts for half!"