SLAVIA V. BILBAO 4:4 (1:3)
— Josef Loos | 25/12/1923 —

In today's rematch, Slavia fought one of its biggest battles. Bilbao went into the match strengthened by 3 players and especially by the referee, who for nothing in the world was going to allow Slavia to win, which only equalized with the superhuman work of all its ranks. Judge Saracho is a type of Spanish judges. He whistled as much as he wanted and as needed to damage Slavia. Bilbao negotiated calmness and "predominance" in the first quarter of an hour, dictating penalties and free kicks in the 15th minute. The home team played often and especially towards the end of the match so sharply that we in the stands counted with horror how much we would get back from this battle of the disabled. Hardly a minute went by that one of our men was not attacked or knocked from behind while making any turn. Anyone who saw today's match will surely value the draw just as much as the 9-2 victory. With this tied match, Slavia really won a moral victory, because it was a victory of unshakable mental balance. Today, Slavia caught up with the example of the first Corinthians in Prague, which set before the team's eyes before departure. We remember Sparta's last match here, which lost 3:2 under the same circumstances.

The team started in the same line-up as on Sunday; from the 2nd minute in the second half, Seifert, who recovered from his injury, was replaced by Pechar. Although everyone deserves praise, it is especially necessary to acknowledge the great performance of Štapl, who was really a "tank" today, breaking down the defense of the home team and penetrating to the goal. His first and equalizing goals were feats of heroic work and artistry. Pechar, who replaced Seifert, played completely reliably. The pitch today was even more soggy than Sunday, so it was difficult to control the ball. Although it was raining, 10,000 spectators were present.