Stop the Counts: A European Adventure in Slovenia

Ah, the Europa Conference League. I'm genuinely going to call it the best of the three European tournaments, despite it being the tertiary competition. And yes, I know it will be a shock if anyone other than Chelsea wins the whole thing, but where else can you see teams from the likes of Northern Ireland, Wales (technically), and even Iceland rub shoulders with the likes of Chelsea, Panathanaikos and, errm...Mlada Boleslav?

In this, my second exposure to this wonderful mish-mash of European sides, I venture south to Celje in Slovenia to watch (technically) Welsh side The New Saints come up against Celje. Both sides have it all to play for with a win highly likely to secure qualification for Celje, though TNS need a win to stand a chance. 

As for my one prior Europa Conference League experience, it was a delightful Thursday night in Trnava, in which Spartak Trnava hosted Danish side Nordsjaelland, losing 2-0 on the night to a side worth about ten times their entire squad. Though I didn't necessarily support or have a particular connection to Spartak, I felt proud of their efforts, and the support throughout the 90 minutes was incredible from the home faithful.

Therein lies the wonder of the Europa Conference League - these magical European nights for sides that rarely get a look in, where fans can celebrate regardless of what happens. Take TNS themselves a few weeks back travelling to Florence to face the giants of Fiorentina. They may have lost 2-0, but for a team hosting European games in Shrewsbury, it almost feels like a scalp to keep the score so low. I also say (technically) Welsh on the basis that they actually play their home games in Oswestry in Shropshire, despite being in the Welsh league system.

Their 2-0 win over Kazakh side Astana in Shrewsbury is what keeps them alive in the competition, with losses also coming at home to Djurgarden (0-1) and Panathanaikos (0-2), as well as away to surprise package Shamrock Rovers (2-1). Put simply, this is must-win for TNS.

Celje themselves are only a point better off than their guests, having started with a 3-1 loss in Portugal to Vitoria. They then went on to trounce Turkish side Basaksehir 5-1, before a 2-1 defeat in Seville against Betis. What followed was a topsy turvy 3-3 at home to Jagiellionia, then a 2-0 loss in Cyprus to Pafos. It''s also must-win for Celje, as a point almost certainly won't be enough. A win, however, gives them a huge chance of progression given the erratic nature of the Conference League

The ground, the game, and any other business

I booked a 7.22am train, changing at Graz and Maribor, not thinking too much of the early start - I usually find them a lot easier once they're actually there before me. As Tom Petty once sang, it's the waiting that's the hardest part. The night before an exciting trip or a flight, I can almost never sleep.

Given that this trip would involve a flight home from Zagreb on Sunday in time for Christmas, I couldn't afford to miss any trains or forget anything or importance in Brno, given that I wouldn't see it until 2025 in theory. That said, if any trains were delayed, I had until 9pm to get to Celje in time for kick-off, so I wasn't overly worried about that at least.

In terms of travelling in this part of Europe, I'd never ventured south of Vienna until this trip, so that in itself was incredibly exciting. Beyond Graz, I'd also never been to Slovenia, nor Croatia where I would end this trip. On Saturday, I'd also planned to take in Dinamo Zagreb against Varazdin, though due to the tragic recent events in Croatia, that never materialised. Needless to say, my heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones.

As for the here and now, I was coming down with a case of Europa Conference League fever. On arriving into Celje, I checked into my hotel some half hour walk away, before heading back toward town to see what it had to offer in terms of food and drink. Before all of that, however, I had the majesty of the Austrian countryside to enjoy from the train window - a stunning part of the world that pictures can barely do justice (especially taken by yours truly). 

I checked into my hotel, which was annoyingly quite far from the stadium, resting up briefly before heading out and seeing Celje. I watched Botev Plovdiv v Ludogorets on TV, obviously, before realising the Bulgarian League is a farce right now. Ludogorets already find themselves 13 points clear, almost certain to win yet another title.

That Europa Conference League fever turned into actual fever on my 2nd day of the trip in Maribor.  Oddly enough, during my enjoyable two beers and pizza at Gust Pub in Celje, the kindly patron gave me a free shot to 'aid my digestion' in his words. While I don't pin the random illness on him or the shot, it is a cruel twist of fate that I'm essentially unable to eat the next day without throwing up. Therefore, Maribor and Zagreb remain visited but only as stopgaps - I'm sure I'll be back.

Anyway, the game alone was very much worth the trek - it was genuinely one of the best I've ever had the privelege of witnessing. The first half started with Celje looking on top throughout - tricky Brazillian forward Edmilson had the ball in the net for the hosts after two minutes, but this was deemed offside. But it was Daniel Davies who gave the away side a shock lead from a well-executed set piece.

As Take That once sang though, it only takes a minute. Though where they referred to the act of falling in love, this instance is more in relation to Celje equalising a minute later - an absolute howler of a backpass played Edmilson in to level immediately.

Celje thought they'd taken the lead half an hour in, but this time, VAR stepped in to rule it out for a tight offside. A beautifully weighted long-ball to Rory Holden saw TNS take the lead again before half-time, though Matjaz Rozman will have been disappointed to concede it, with the ball having stung his palms on the way in. 

Take That reared their ugly heads once more though, with Edmilson AGAIN equalising a minute later - this time the gorgeous long-ball coming from the hosts almost immediately from the kick-off. Celje conspired to miss a veritable hatful of second half chances, though Connor Roberts in the TNS goal did also have an absolute stormer of a game to his credit.

The pressure from Celje eventually told, as Slovenia international centre-back David Zec slid in to give Celje a deserved lead, despite potential hints of offside. A frenetic stoppage time saw Roberts keep out two golden chances from Celje, before the host's defence very nearly conspired to turn the ball into the own net and send both teams out. 

The full-time whistle sounded on the most magnificent of games, however, and I felt a genuine sadness at it having ended. I was delighted for Celje to make it through to the knockout stages, despite their relative toothlessness up front, and their fans made a heck of an atmsphere despite the limited numbers. 

Naturally Slovenian football perhaps doesn't get the same numbers or plaudits as some of its neighbours or European counterparts, but perhaps it should. Celje will play APOEL in the play-off round, which will be a huge test given that they've already lost to Cypriot opposition in the form of Pafos. All that said, it was a pleasure to witness such a huge night in Slovenian football - here's to many more.

Five things you didn't know about Celje

1.) You might be wondering where the blog title came from. Well, NK Celje are known as Grofje, which translates as the counts due to the city's historic associations with royalty. Celjski Grad (Celje Castle) is also visible from many parts of the city.

2.) The club are over a century old having formed in 1919, winning just the one league and cup prior to Slovenia's independence - back in 1964 where they completed a double in the Slovenian Republic League and Cup. Before 1991, the Slovenian Republic League fed into the Yugoslav league system, as did the cup. 

3.) Since 1991, the club have been a mainstay in the top tier of Slovenian football, along with Maribor. They won their first Slovenian honour in 2005 with the Slovenian Cup, but it would take another fifteen years to win their first Slovenian League title. Their next came last season, with former Liverpool winger Albert Riera doing good things in Slovenia right now.

4.) The club play at Stadion Z'dežele, which has also hosted many a Slovenian international fixture over the years, perhaps the most famous of which was a 1-0 success over neighbours Italy back in 2004 during World Cup Qualification. That said, they've also lost to Latvia and Scotland there, so...yeah...

5.) In modern times, Celje Castle hosts an event which translates as Under the Stars of Celje, which features numerous performances and representations of medieval life. The castle also boasts some 60,000 visitors each year.