Vidi face fellow mid-table side Ujpest at the weekend

In more ways than one, a real prestige battle is expected on Sunday at 14:30 at the Szusza Ferenc Stadium in Újpest. It will be the 126th first division match between the two clubs. Of the 125 games so far, we have won 51, lost 48 and drawn 26. The goal difference is 188-180 in our favour, which is a remarkable average of three goals per game.

We last won at Újpest more than four years ago, winning 5-0 on 23rd January 2021, but since then we have five defeats and a draw at the home of the 4th district.

The current badge of Újpest FC bears the year 1885, as this is when the Újpest Gymnastics Club was founded - where initially gymnastics, then fencing and athletics were the activities of UTE - and football was established in Újpest 14 years later, in 1899.

In 1901, the National league started in Hungary, where Újpest was promoted to the second division. In 1905, the club's football team was promoted to the first division, from which it was relegated at the end of the 1910/1911 championship, but was back in the top flight a year later. Since the 1912 championship, Újpest have been in the top division continuously, becoming the Hungarian record holders.

In 2006, we played a much more dramatic match in the last round against Újpest and there is probably no Vidi or Újpest fan who doesn't know the story. Before the last round, both Újpest and DVSC had 65-65 points, with Újpest topping the table thanks to several wins. That meant they were just one win away from their 21st title. The final match of the season was not played at Újpest's home ground, but at the Népstadion, due to the high turnout - more than 15,000 people bought tickets for the game. In the 63rd minute, Újpest, who were already playing with a man down due to Rajczi's red card, took the lead, but we managed to turn the game around within ten minutes. In the 79th minute, Norbert Tóth was sent off, so the Budapest side finished the game with 9 men. The coup de grace came when Ferenc Horváth scored as a substitute in the 93rd minute, setting up a 1-3 final score, which also meant that DVSC were out of the gold medal race as they won the last round.

Last summer, both teams' squads and coaching staffs underwent significant changes, with several of our players leaving for Újpest: apart from Gergényi, Karamoko (who left after his loan contract expired and then went on loan to Újpest), Besé and Fiola, as well as last year's coaching staff included head coach Bartosz Grzelak, assistant coach Johan Sandahl, goalkeeper coach András Elbert and fitness coach Ádám Száraz, who are currently working for the Budapest team. András Huszti, who was on loan at Újpest last season, has joined us this season after we loaned him from his club ZTE in the summer.

Our opponents on Sunday are winless in the NB I this calendar year, with Újpest FC winning 2-1 at home to DVSC last December. Since then, four draws (Újpest FC - Kecskeméti TE 1-1, DVTK - Újpest FC 1-1, Nyíregyháza Spartacus FC - Újpest FC 0-0, Újpest FC - Puskás Akadémia FC 1-1) and four defeats (ETO FC Győr - Újpest FC 3-0, Újpest FC - ZTE FC 1-2, Újpest FC - MTK 1-5, Paksi FC - Újpest FC 6-1) are their team's league record.

After the defeat in Paks, the stability under head coach Bartosz Grzelak was seriously shaken, but Újpest FC president Péter Ratatics told the club's official website that the confidence in the Swedish coach is still alive.