Hungarian Football League – Round 11: Haladás maintain unbeaten record since July as Fradi lengthen lead at top

A fourth goal of the season from rising Hungarian star midfielder Márió Németh cancelled out Soma Novothny’s opener for hosts Diosgyőri VTK and gave Szombathelyi Haladás a 1-1 away draw which preserves their unbeaten record in the league since an opening-day loss away at league leaders Ferencváros.

Talking of whom, Ferencváros celebrated their 3,000th league match with a 2-1 victory at home to Budapest rivals Budapest Honvéd. The visitors actually took the lead through Souleymane Youla’s third goal in three games against Fradi but veterán Tamás Hajnál and winger Roland Varga turned the match around with goals which made the half-time score 2-1. There were no further additions to the scoreline which means that Thomas Doll’s team have gone over a year unbeaten in NBI and are now on 31 points, a full 13 clear of the chasing pack.

Behind Ferencváros and Haladás in NBI is the unlikely name of Paksi FC who scored their first away goals of the whole season in defeating Vasas 2-1 in Budapest. Tamás Koltai scored his first goal for the club after his short stay at Videoton following a summer move from Győr before László Bartha added a second towards the end of the first half. Remili Mohamed’s fourth goal of Vasas’s nine this season reduced the arrears but the team from the Angyalföld district of Budapest couldn’t find an equaliser and therefore remain in the division’s relegation zone with ten points from eleven games.

The only team below Vasas is Békéscsaba 1912 Előre on eight points but at least this round they picked their fifth point in the last four games, an added-time leveller from Branislav Punosevac salvaging a home draw for Zoran Spilsjak’s team after veteran striker Sándor Torghelle had put MTK ahead in the 64th minute from close range.