Hungary

Preview

Hungary were ranked second in Group 6 but faced stiff competition for one of the two qualifying berths, battling with favourites Spain, plucky N. Ireland and a vastly improved Rep. of Ireland.

After László Balint short stint, György Mezey returned to the national team as manager in the time for the campaign for Italy’90. Mezey had of course been head coach also under Mexico’86, before leaving for Kuwait. Hungary’s 1988 campaign hadn’t been a particularly good one, and Mezey was re-appointed in order to bring back hope for another World Cup. The Hungarians were well used to the world stage tournament at the time, having been qualified for every World Cup since 1978. Would it be a fourth in a row? Read more . . .

Results

Qualifier 1
19.10.88

Hungary
Vincze (85′)

1–0
(Report)

N. Ireland

Despite almost full control throughout, Hungary can only get a narrow win. The visitors are playing very defensively (and disciplined), and Hungary have a hard time finding the openings. Vincze had been vying for a start, but came on to grab a late winner. The match also has some interesting tactical ploys from Mezey, as he switches to a 3-4-3 formation at half time.

Line-up (4-1-2-1-2): P Disztl – Sallai, Nagy, Mészöly (Dajka h-t), Sass – Garaba (c), Kozma, G Bognár, Détári – Kiprich, Hajszán (Vincze 82).

Friendly
15.11.1988

Greece
Lagonidis (3′)
Tsaloukhidis (51′, 53′)

3–0

Hungary

This was Mezey’s attempt to establish a team after being hit by suspension on several key players. It is a crushing defeat, albeit to a good home side. The team is a mix of experience and new features, and debuts are handed to midfielder Csucsánszky and forwards Fischer and Balog, who would all feature during the qualifiers.

Line-up: P Disztl (c) – Máriási, Pintér, Mészöly (Bordás h-t), Sass (Keller 59) – E Kovács, Kozma, Csucsánszky, Vincze (Fischer h-t) – Kiprich, Hajszán (T Balog 79).

Qualifier 2
11.12.88

Malta
Busuttil (46′, 90′)

2–2
Report

Hungary
Vincze (7′)
Kiprich (57′ pen.)

Mezey had been without half his first team due to a domestic bribery scandal, and they had conceded a late, late goal to drop a costly point. Four of the players in the starting eleven would never again feature during the qualifiers.

Line-up (4-4-2): P Disztl (c) – Kozma, Csuhay, L Disztl, Keller – Kékesi, E Kovács, Csucsánsky, Vincze (Fischer 72) – Kiprich (Pintér 88), T Balog.

Team News
György Mezey resigns from his position as manager for the national team after the match in Malta. Not primarily because of the poor result, but because of a clause in his contract that permitted him to leave if he felt he couldn’t work freely. The domestic investigation that had banned many of his players made him trigger this clause. On the 30th December, Bertalan Bicskei (current Honvéd manager) is appointed new manager for Hungary.

Qualifier 3
08.03.89

Hungary

0–0
Report

Rep. of Ireland

Despite being the team creating the more opportunities, it is a bit of a lacklustre performance by the Hungarians in their first match under new manager Bicskei. Chances are few and far between. Détári is deployed in an unusually deep midfield role with limited success.

Line-up (4-1-3-2): P Disztl – Kozma, Sass, L Disztl, Z Bognár – E Kovács – Détári, Gregor (Boda 78), Hajszán – Kiprich (c), Mészáros (G Bognár h-t).

Friendly
04.04.1989

Hungary
Détári (22′)
E. Kovács (36′)
Z. Bognár (74′)

3–0
Report

Switzerland

An impressive first win under their new manager, with goals from Détári, E Kovács and Z Bognár. Debut for left-sided midfielder Csehi.

Line-up (4-1-3-2): P Disztl – Kozma, Keller, L Disztl, Z Bognár – E Kovács (T Balog h-t) – Détári (Csucsánszky 81), Sass (Csehi 79), Gregor – Kiprich (c) (Fischer 53), Hajszán.

Qualifier 4
12.04.89

Hungary
Boda (49′ pen.)

1–1
Report

Malta
Busuttil (7′)

It was obviously a huge disappointment to drop yet another point against the group minnows, and the Hungarian chances for qualifying now were hanging by the thread. They could even have lost after a second half display that could’ve been seen as too ambitious, disrupting the balance in the team. Despite this, they hit the bar through forward Boda in injury time.

Line-up (4-4-2): P Disztl – Kozma (Kiprich 74), L Disztl, Z Bognár, Keller – G Bognár, E Kovács, Détári (c), Sass (Fischer h-t) – Boda, Hajszán.

Friendly
26.04.89

Italy
Vialli (8′)
Ferri (53′)
Berti (67′)
Carnevale (77′)

4–0
Report

Hungary

Against a more or less full strength Italy, a relatively intact Hungary went on to concede three second half goals. Hungary never stood a chance against an opponent too strong, too slick and too rampant. Only Détári could keep with the level of the home players.

Line-up (4-4-2): P Disztl – Kozma, L Disztl, Balog, Keller – Zsinka (Gregor 60), Z Bognár, Détári (c), Vincze (Hajszán 66) – Fodor (G Bognár 76), K Kovács.

Qualifier 5
04.06.89

Rep. of Ireland
McGrath (33′)
Cascarino (81′)

2–0
Report

Hungary

This was Hungary’s first ever defeat against the Irish, and it happened at a crucial time. The visitors were often boys against men, and the road to Italia ’90 now seems a long one. Hungary had no answer to the Irish long-ball tactics, and Cascarino inflicted all sorts of problems on their backline.

Line-up (5-4-1): P Disztl – Kozma, Z Bognár, L Disztl, Garaba, Keller – Mészáros (Vincze 72), Fitos, Détári (c), Csehi (G Bognár 67) – Boda.

Qualifier 6
06.09.89

N. Ireland
Whiteside (90′)

1–2
Report

Hungary
K. Kovács (13′)
Gy. Bognár (45′)

The away side is generally outfought throughout most of the match, but still somehow manage to get a win. There is little to be excited about in terms of attacking play, and yet two individual performances mean they score two goals. N. Ireland deserved a lot more, and as so often before Hungary do not thrive when needing to get stuck in.

Line-up (4-4-2): P Disztl – Sallai, Keller, L Disztl, Limperger – E Kovács, G Bognár (Z Bognár 85), Détári (c), Sass – Fischer (Hajszán 90), K Kovács.

Qualifier 7
11.10.89

Hungary
Pintér (39′, 82′)

2–2
Report

Spain
Salinas (31′)
Míchel (36′)

Line-up (4-4-2): P Disztl – Sallai, Z Bognár, Pintér, Keller (Boda 72) – G Bognár, Róth (Kozma h-t), Détári (c), Vincze – Kiprich, K Kovács.

International friendly
25.10.89. Hungary 1-1 Greece
Goal: Szekeres
Hungary: P Disztl – Sallai, Keller, Limperger, Pintér – Kozma, Détári (c), E Kovács (Szekeres h-t), G Bognár – Fischer, K Kovács (Kiprich h-t (Boda 77))
Winger Szekeres got the Hungarian goal, with Limperger making his only second appearance at international level as centre half. Fischer starts again, and he seems to have an admirer in Bicskei.

Qualifier 8 
15.11.89. Spain 4-0 Hungary
Line-up (4-4-2): P Disztl – Simon, Pintér, Z Bognár, Keller – Kozma, E Kovács, G Bognár (c) (Szalma 90), Szekeres – Fischer (Bácsi 64), K Kovács
The heavy defeat was a miserable way to end the campaign, and they had been tactically inept, and with players underperforming. Indeed, Hungary had been fortunate not to lose by an even heavier margin, even if they could have scored themselves through substitute Bácsi, one of very few light points. Right back Simon was another.

Conclusion

On the merit of their performances, there is good reason too believe that Spain and the Republic of Ireland always were going to be stronger teams than Hungary in this qualification. Hungary can nevertheless feel aggravated that off-field incidents ruined a large part of their work. The domestic authorities’ investigation of several key players in the team resulted in temporary bans that made the job difficult to György Mezey. The disappointing draw in Malta not only damaged their chances severely, but limited the selection of Mezey’s successor for the six remaining fixtures.

Bertalan Bicskei took over the reins for Hungary, with 6 games remaining, but never really got the team going. A decent, if uninspirational, draw against Rep. of Ireland (h) was followed by another abysmal draw aginst Malta, this time at home in Budapest. With Eire growing in stature and beating Hungary 2-0 in Dublin, the Hungarians were in all but theory out of contention after 5 of 8 matches. Hungary were overall unimpressive: they were sluggish and sloppy in a style of play that looked far too ambitious for their calibre of players. They were also very narrow, relying much on Détári’s creative prowess. Both Détári and their other star player, Kiprich, had their moments, but they were too rare. Add to this that Bicskei didn’t appear to know which was his best XI, making the turnover of selected players one of the biggest among the European participants in these qualifiers.

While they looked defeated before the three final games, Hungary somehow managed to come back to save a microscopic element of excitement down to the final day. They won in Belfast due to individual brilliance, despite again being far from convincing, and even managed a draw against Spain at home. The hammering they received on the final day in Seville did however reveal the rotten state of the team.

PosTeamPlWDLGFGAPts
1Spain861120313
2Rep. of Ireland852110212
3Hungary82428128
4N. Ireland82156125
5Malta80263182

Player statistics

Number of players used: 35
Number of players including unused substitutes: 51
Ever-presents (720 mins): 1 (Péter Disztl)
Leading goalscorer: Vincze and Pintér (both 2)
Yellow/red cards: 6/0

– overview

PlayerAppsStartSubUnSubMinsGlsY/R
Bácsi, Sándor1126
Balog, Tibor11190
Bánki, József11
Boda, Imre4222101(1)
Bognár, György75251211/0
Bognár, Zoltán651451
Bordás, Csaba1
Brockhauser, István1
Cseh, Andras1
Csehi, Tibor1167
Csucsanszky, Zoltan1190
Csuhay, József1190
Dajka, László1145
Détári, Lájos665401/0
Disztl, László55450
Disztl, Péter88720
Duró, József1
Fischer, Pál422216
Fitos, József11190
Garaba, Imre221801/0
Gaspar, József1
Gelei, Károly2
Gregor, József11178
Gulyás, István3
Gyimesi, László1
Hajszán, Gyula431267
Herédi, Attila1
Jován, Róbert1
Kardos, József1
Katzenbach, Imre1
Kekesi, Reszö1190
Keller, József661522
Kincses, Sándor1
Kiprich, József54113741(1)
Kovács, Ervin55450
Kovács, Kálmán332701
Kozma, István7615691/0
Limpeger, Zsolt11901/0
Mészáros, Ferenc22117
Mészöly, Geza1145
Nagy, Antal1190
Petry, Zsolt1
Pinter, Attila32118221/0
Róth, Antal1145
Sallai, Sandor33270
Sass, Janos44315
Schróth, Lajos1
Simon, Tibor1190
Szalma, József111
Szekeres, József1190
Vincze, István4221882

– game by game

PlayerNIR (h)Mal (a)Ire (a)Mal (h)Ire (h)NIR (a)Spa (h)Spa (a)AppsMins
Disztl, P90909090909090908720
Sallai9090903270
Nagy90190
Sass909045904315
Mészöly45145
Garaba90902180
Kiprich90889016R904+1374
Kozma909090749045906+1569
Bognár, G904590238590895+2512
Détári9090909090906540
Hajszán82909053+1267
Dajka45+145
Vincze87218902+2188
CsehR
GyimesiR
GáspárR
Disztl, L90909090905450
Keller90R90909072906522
Kékesi90190
Csuhay90190
Kovács, E90909090905450
Csucsánszky90190
Balog, T90R190
Fischer184589642+2216
Pintér290902+1182
BordásR
KincsesR
PetryR
Bognár, Z909090190905+1451
Gregor78R178
Mészáros45722117
Boda129090182+2210
KardosR
GeleiRR
KatzenbachR
Fitos90R190
Csehi67167
HerédiR
GulyásRRR
Limperger90190
Kovács, K9090903270
DuróR
Róth45145
JovánR
Simon90190
Sekeres90190
Szalma1+11
Bácsi26+126
BánkiR
SchróthR
BrockhauserR

– ratings

PosPlayerAverage ratingsNumber of rated games
1Kiprich6,904
2Bognár, G6,806
3Disztl, P6,758
4Détári6,756
5Disztl, L6,665
6Kovács, E6,645
7Sass6,574
8Kozma6,527
9Bognár, Z6,465
10Keller6,436
Explanation to table: Number of rated games: 8. A player must have been given a rating in half or more of the games in order to be considered

Post-qualification

Friendly
20.03.1990 Hungary 2-0 United States
Goals: Petres, Limperger
Line-up: Brockhauser – Mónos, Pintér, Mészöly, Palaczky (Lakatos 69) – G Bognár (c) (T Balog 81), Limperger, Jován (Fischer h-t), Duró – Petres (Horváth 69), Máriási (Csucsánszky 81)

Friendly
28.03.1990 Hungary 1-3 France
Goal: Pintér (pen.)
Line-up: Brockhauser – Mónos, Pintér, Mészöly, Palaczky – G Bognár (Duró 62), Limperger, Détári (c) (T Balog 79), Máriási – K Kovács (Jován 62), Petres (Fischer 52)

Friendly
11.04.1990 Austria 3-0 Hungary
Line-up: Brockhauser – Mónos, Pintér, Mészöly, Palaczky (T Balog 64) – Jován, Limperger, G Bognár (c) (Lőrincz 85), Máriási – Duró (Márton 82), Petres (Katona 64)

Friendly
28.05.1990 Hungary 3-0 United Arab Emirates (in Nîmes, France)
Goals: K Kovács 3
Line-up: Gelei – Mónos, Pintér, L Disztl, Varga – Mészáros (Fischer h-t), Garaba (c), G Bognár, Szalma – Kiprich (T Balog 57), K Kovács

Friendly
02.06.1990 Hungary 3-1 Colombia
Goals: G Bognár, K Kovács 2
Line-up: Gáspár (Bodnár h-t) – Mónos (Mészöly h-t), Pintér, L Disztl, Szalma – Duró (Varga 69), G Bognár, Garaba (c) (Csik h-t), Máriási (Csucsánszky 77) – Kiprich (Fischer h-t), K Kovács

This Post Has One Comment

  1. simon

    17 May 1988 Hungary – Austria

    Reserves
    Hungary: Andrusch,Kozma,L Disztl,Keller,Esterhazy,Varga

    Austria: Konsel,Schottel,Stoger, Werner, Hasenhuttl

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