AB Advance to the Second Round of the Cup with 2–1 Victory Over Holbæk

AB progressed to the second round of the Betano Cup with a 2–1 victory over Holbæk B&I on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, at Holbæk Sportsby.

AB's coaching staff rotated the squad, giving opportunities to players who had seen little or no playing time during the opening rounds of the Betinia Liga season. As a result, Noah Engell was the only player to retain his place in the starting lineup from the weekend's match against FC Fredericia.

The match also marked the club debuts of William Warrer and goalkeeper Michael Stone.

Starting XI

Michael Stone started in goal behind a back four of William Warrer, Mikkel Brund, Aidan Liu, and Travian Sousa. Tobias Lykkebak and Marco Vesterholm anchored the midfield, while Casper Grening, Noah Engell, Saliou Diop, and Tobias Hageltorn made up the attacking unit.

First Half

AB started aggressively, pressing high from the opening whistle and making life difficult for Holbæk. After just nine minutes, Saliou Diop took matters into his own hands, calmly dribbling past three defenders before finishing low into the far corner to give AB a 1–0 lead.

Only three minutes later, AB doubled the advantage. After winning a free kick just outside the penalty area on the right side, Travian Sousa curled a direct effort into the net to make it 2–0.

Despite falling behind, Holbæk responded well. Whenever AB gave them space or lost possession, the home side looked dangerous on the counterattack. However, their finishing lacked precision, with several attempts blocked by AB's defense or comfortably handled by debutant goalkeeper Michael Stone, who impressed throughout the first half.

Second Half

At halftime, Alfred Horup replaced Noah Engell in midfield, with Tobias Lykkebak moving further forward. Gabriel Noga also entered the match in central defense in place of Aidan Liu. AB began the second half strongly and created two promising attacks within the opening four minutes, although both were halted by offside calls.

Tobias Hageltorn, Tobias Lykkebak, and Casper Grening all came close to extending the lead, but none could find the finishing touch. After 55 minutes, AB won a corner and generated several opportunities inside the box. Eventually, Holbæk goalkeeper Benjamin Høier Olsen produced an excellent save to deny Casper Grening.

A few minutes later, Mikkel Clement replaced Marco Vesterholm in midfield, while Tobias Damtoft came on for Travian Sousa at left back. Marcus Immersen replaced goalscorer Saliou Diop, who had shown encouraging signs during an impressive performance and gave supporters plenty to look forward to.

With around 20 minutes remaining, William Warrer was forced off through injury. Having already used all permitted substitutions, AB had to finish the match with ten men. That dramatically changed the flow of the game. Holbæk poured forward during the closing stages and created a series of chances. Michael Stone and AB's defense produced several important interventions, while Mikkel Brund led the defensive effort with multiple crucial blocks. Eventually, Holbæk pulled one back when Nicki Bentsen headed home from a corner to reduce the deficit to 2–1.

The hosts continued pushing in stoppage time, committing players forward in search of an equalizer. That left space for AB on the counterattack, but despite several excellent opportunities, the visitors were unable to put the match beyond doubt.

The final whistle confirmed a 2–1 victory, sending AB through to the second round of the Betano Cup. The draw for the second round will take place on Thursday, August 6, 2026.

Marco Vesterholm: "We lacked ruthlessness."

Captain Marco Vesterholm believed AB should have put the game away much earlier. "We got off to a good start and played the way we wanted. The second half became far longer than it should have. Once we lost a player through injury and had to play with ten men, things became much more dramatic than necessary. Even with ten men, we should have scored from the chances we created.

It became a typical cup tie that ended up being far more exciting than it needed to be. You do get a little nervous towards the end, you have to admit that. But we trust our defenders and our goalkeeper.

We really had to fight for the win today, even though it should never have become that difficult. It was the same against Fredericia—we should have finished that match before they equalized in stoppage time. Especially in the First Division, if we don't take our big chances, we'll drop points. Fortunately we won today, but we need to become more clinical. We had to battle right until the end, but we showed that we can do that too, and that's something positive to build on."

Fannar Berg Gunnólfsson: "We created our own problems."

Head coach Fannar Berg Gunnólfsson was pleased to advance but felt there was room for improvement. "First and foremost, we're through to the next round of the cup. In the first half we played very well in periods, but there were also moments where we forced things too much, which allowed them to play into dangerous areas.

We started the second half really well, but we should have scored a third and fourth goal. We didn't take our chances and we were careless with our finishing. That's something we have to improve. We had to take some risks today, and some of the players played a full 90 minutes for the first time. When William Warrer went off injured, we were down to ten men.

We stopped playing our football and almost created a panic situation ourselves. Instead of simply clearing the ball, we should have kept it on the ground and continued playing. Even in the closing minutes we played our way through them and should have scored.

It was great to see several players take important steps forward today. Everyone gave everything they had. We won, and we'll take plenty of positives from the performance as we continue to build."

AB return to Betinia Liga action on Saturday, August 8, 2026, away to Hobro IK at DS Arena, with kickoff at 4:00 PM.