Northern Ireland v Hungary (29/03/2022)

• They were beaten by Belgium 4-0 in the round of 16 in France. • It was via the play-offs that Hungary reached Euro 2020 as well , though they failed to make it out of a difficult group that featured France, Germany and Portugal . • Puskas, who played for Real Madrid, is the country’s all-time leading scorer with 84 goals in 85 internationals. FIFA’s Puskas Award - given to the ‘most beautiful goal’ scored over the year - is named in his honour. The national team also play at the Puskas Arena. • Goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly, who played for Crystal Palace and was renowned for wearing grey tracksuit bottoms during games, is Hungary’s most-capped international having appeared in 108 games for his country.

DOMESTIC • The Nemzeti Bajnoksag I, which translates as ‘the National Championship’, is the top f light in the Hungarian league system. • It was founded in 1901 and features 12 teams, who play each other three times a season. • The league champions enter the qualification process for the Champions League while the second- and third-placed teams, along with the winner of the Hungarian Cup, enter the Europa League. Two clubs are relegated from the division each season. • Many of Hungary’s great players from their golden era left their mark on the league, including legendary striker Puskas, who scored a staggering 357 goals in 354 appearances for Honved between 1943 and 1956 before joining Real Madrid. • The competition’s most successful club are Budapest-based Ferencvaros, who have won 32 titles, nine more than cross-city rivals MTK Budapest . Ferencvaros, known as the Green Eagles, have won the past three titles and came into this international window with a seven-point lead at the top. • Ferencvaros also have a European trophy in their cabinet . In the 1964-65 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup they beat Juventus in Turin in the final , having knocked out Manchester United, Athletic Bilbao and Roma along the way. • They reached the final in 1968 as well but lost to Don Revie’s Leeds United across two legs. • The Budapest club knocked out Celtic and reached the UEFA Champions League group stage last season. They were pitted in a group with Juventus, Barcelona and Dynamo Kyiv, and took one point from their six games.

PICTURE COURTESY OF UEFA .COM

IRISHFA.COM

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