Lincoln Red Imps open their 2026/27 league campaign with a win

Lincoln Red Imps 2-0 Glacis United

Just three days after their late extra-time victory against Northern Ireland club Larne to qualify for the league phase of the Conference League, Lincoln Red Imps faced Glacis United in their first league match of the season.

The latter, although not considered one of the top six sides in the league, are a proven difficult team to play against, technically well balanced and with an offensive outlook which makes them a challenging opponent.

St Joseph and Europa’s wins this weekend gave Lincoln Red Imps an extra reason to look for all three points. Glacis, meanwhile, were hoping to take advantage of the fact that Lincoln had played a cup final the previous weekend, followed by a tough second leg in the Conference League, stretching a squad which had yet to properly gel as a unit.

An expected tight contest for the top places had already been forecast. Lincoln needed to show from the start that their squad were capable of rotating effectively to ensure they could cope with what was set to be another hectic autumn and winter period of football. The squad had little breathing space to come together, with expectations to perform at a high level already cast upon them despite this being their first league match of the season.

The expected use of a greater number of home-grown players did not materialise. The club, which had used eighteen home-grown players in the Reserve League, most of whom were 18 or under, fielded three home-grown players in its starting eleven. Numerous changes were nevertheless made, making this one of the first real tests of Lincoln’s resilience.

Glacis United, who had already shown in their first match this season that they were a battling side, did not make it easy for the Imps to settle into any type of flowing game.

The first fifteen minutes saw Lincoln more on the back foot than controlling the pace of the match as some might have expected.

With neither Toledano nor Kike in the front line, the emphasis fell more heavily on Lincoln’s runners and midfield to produce.

With experience in defence through the likes of Britto, Jolley and Lopes, Glacis were being halted effectively in the early stages as they arrived at the edge of the box.

Slowly, Lincoln started to gain ground as their runners began to make headway, pushing Glacis gradually back.

Glacis were nonetheless showing that they were capable of posing a threat, with a strike at goal in the 21st minute forcing Santana to stand his ground and block.

Just three minutes later, Morillo was to force a free kick after a quick break down the left flank. The last defender pushed him to the ground but was judged to have been too far to the side for Morillo to have posed a direct threat on goal.

Glacis found themselves defending deep almost immediately, this time with keeper Victor coming out well to block.

Just as quickly, Lincoln were defending their own goalmouth, with a corner floated into the near post for Santana to punch away.

Glacis were showing that they had the quality and drive to take the contest to the league champions, at least during this early part of the match.

It was not quite the contest Lincoln would have hoped for after their gruelling midweek match. They had to contend with a tightly contested encounter, their closest chance coming in the 32nd minute with a half-shot, half-cross attempt from Nano flying across goal.

Glacis did not allow Lincoln much space to slow down the pace or dominate possession.

In the 35th minute, it was the man who has recently been dubbed the new Captain Fantastic, Bernardo Lopes, who came to the rescue. A long throw flicked behind the defence saw Lopes strike from the edge of the penalty area with the venom he is known for, adding to his tally of goals.

The player who replaced Roy Chipolina as both captain and commander of the Imps’ defence was also taking up a similar role as a goalscorer from set pieces.

Not sitting back, Glacis searched for a quick response, forcing a chaotic scramble by Lincoln’s defence to clear the danger just feet from their goal line.

Where teams have generally backed away and looked to protect their goal after conceding against Lincoln, Glacis did the opposite.

In the 39th minute, a well-timed intervention from Santana blocked what looked like a certain goal. Glacis then saw a second strike cleared just feet from the goal line, with Santana’s defence doing well to support the keeper after he had come off his line.

With the match wide open, Lincoln were immediately at the other end, with Idrissi unable to find his target from a tight, narrow angle on the right flank.

The Lincoln head coach guided his players from the touchline as the momentum of the match continued unrelentingly.

Although leading, Lincoln were being pushed hard, forcing them to search for a second goal with Glacis continuing to look dangerous in attack.

An uncomfortable first half for a Lincoln starting eleven being tested for their resilience was to produce the goods when it mattered. Playing down the left wing, a low-driven ball forced the defence to clear under pressure, with Pinto finding the ball in his path before sweeping it up and striking past Victor for Lincoln’s second just moments before the half-time whistle.

The second goal was a body blow to Glacis, who had played well during the first half but had not found the net.

Lincoln kicked off the second half trying to impose their own pace, controlling possession and slowly building up their play. This did not detract from Glacis continuing to run at Lincoln’s defence.

It made for an open game, with Lincoln striking the crossbar early on after a quick break of their own.

With changes made and players such as Torrilla on the field, Lincoln slowly managed to impose more of their pace on the game. This forced Glacis to sit back more in defence as the second half started to take shape.

As Lincoln started to impose themselves on the field, an audacious heel flick towards goal by Jolley started to show how confidence was growing. Glacis were slowly losing ground as the two-goal lead started to bite harder.

The lack of opportunities to close the gap, as they were pushed further into defence, was hurting them.

Just as they had done against St Joseph, Lincoln grew in confidence, asserting themselves during the second half. Their opponents were slowly backtracking, their confidence dented as Lincoln pushed forward.

Idrissi, who had missed Thursday’s match, was a constant threat down the right, forcing a foul which saw Rutjen, who had just come on, send a glancing header just inches wide.

The latter had come on for the injured Cardozo.

Idrissi was to force Victor into a good block at the near post in the 69th minute as, once again, he took on his marker and raced past him to find space for a shot.

The presence of Elogabashy up front added some extra height to Lincoln’s front line, where Pinto and Morillo had not made much of an impact.

The dynamics up front were, however, changing, with Lincoln losing ground offensively and seeing their defence worked harder by Glacis as they approached the final quarter of an hour.

In the 76th minute, Glacis keeper Victor bravely came out of his penalty area to block Elogabashy from receiving a long through ball. The keeper got to the ball first but was unable to avoid a collision which both players had tried to prevent. Victor felt the impact but was soon back on his feet and returned to take his place in goal.

Victor was to be tested again after Nano sent a long, floated free kick from inside Lincoln’s half towards Jolley. The latter controlled the ball well before setting up Idrissi, whose close-range shot hit the woodwork. Victor had covered his goal well, giving the Lincoln player very little space to squeeze the ball past him.

Lincoln were momentarily reduced to ten men as Pinto received treatment, with all substitutions having been used. Glacis took advantage of the numbers to have an attempt at goal.

With Pinto back in play, Lincoln had a corner in the next move, but it was cleared. This led to some friction as Glacis player Priem shoved Torrilla off the field after a challenge. The Lincoln player made his feelings known with a few directed words, prompting referee Barcelo to call for calm from both players.

Pinto was back on the ground needing treatment in the 88th minute, pausing play momentarily just as Glacis were starting to push Lincoln back into their own half.

A disappointing long throw-in then forced Glacis to build from the back again, where they lost possession.

The Maroons and Clarets, however, did not give up hope of getting at least a late goal. Their next long throw-in saw the penalty area packed as Lincoln protected their goal.

Lincoln held on to walk away with their first league win at the first attempt while keeping a clean sheet, capping a perfect week of success on the pitch.