FC Lugano continue their run in the Swiss Cup. Playing away at Pully Football, a Second Interregional League side, the bianconeri ran out 4-0 winners in the round of 32 and secured their place in the round of 16. The match was decided by a brace from Martim Marques, a penalty converted by Ezgjan Alioski and an own goal by Beausire.
Three days on from their European victory against Red Star, Mattia Croci-Torti opted for a significant rotation of the squad, introducing several changes to the line-up. Among these, Marques was deployed on the right side of defence, whilst Zanotti played in midfield. These changes did not compromise the team’s effectiveness, as they took control of the match from the very first minutes.
A STRONG START
Lugano started strongly and took the lead as early as the 5th minute. The man of the moment was Marques, who cut in from the right flank, linked up with Behrens and fired a shot from the edge of the box that nestled in the corner, leaving Frangioni with no chance.
The goal allowed the bianconeri to take immediate control of the match and continue to press for a second, which came in the 19th minute. Pihlström tried his luck from distance and hit the crossbar, whilst on the rebound Alioski was brought down by a defender as he attempted to reach the ball. The referee awarded a penalty, which Alioski himself coolly converted to make it 2–0.
The home side struggled to pose a threat and had to wait until the half-hour mark to create their first chance. Massimo Comisetti tried his luck with a right-footed shot from distance, but it went well wide of Gebhardt’s goal.
Lugano continued to control possession and, just as the first half was drawing to a close, they scored their third goal. Following a corner taken by Beckham Castro, Behrens met the ball with a header and it was subsequently deflected by Pully Beausire’s midfielder, who ended up putting it into his own net. The bianconeri thus went into the break leading 3–0.
MARQUES SCORES HIS FOURTH
The second half begins with an attempt by the home side. In the 47th minute, Isabella received the ball on the edge of the box, turned onto her left foot and tried to catch Gebhardt off guard at the near post, but her shot went wide. Lugano’s response came just two minutes later, when Behrens was played in deep and tried a low left-footed shot that went just wide.
In the 57th minute, it was Marques who stole the show once again. Starting once again from the right flank, the Portuguese player cuts into the box and unleashes a splendid curling left-footed shot that nestles in the top corner. An unstoppable strike for Frangioni, making it 4–0 and securing a brace for the bianconeri’s number 26.
With the result now all but decided, Croci-Torti managed his players’ energy levels through substitutions, whilst Lugano continued to control the match without conceding any significant space to their opponents.
In the closing stages, it was Behrens in particular who persistently sought to add to his tally. In the 82nd minute, the German striker broke down the right, cut inside and shot with his left foot, only to be denied by an excellent save from Frangioni. Six minutes later, Pully created one of their rare chances through substitute Mehraz, who fired a low shot from inside the box without troubling Gebhardt, who did well to save the central effort.
The final chance of the match fell once again to the bianconeri. In the 89th minute, Cimignani played Behrens into the box and the German tried his luck at goal once more, but this time the post denied him a goal.
The score remained unchanged. FC Lugano ran out 4–0 winners at the end of a match they controlled with authority, in which they demonstrated their superiority and progressed to the next round without any particular difficulty. The bianconeri now await the outcome of the round of 16 draw, scheduled for this evening at 7.00 pm, before turning their attention back to their European commitments: on Thursday, they face an away trip to Madrid to take on Getafe, in their second match of the UEFA Conference League League Phase.
MATCH REPORT
PULLY FOOTBALL – FC LUGANO 0–4
Swiss Cup – Round of 32 (2nd round)
18 October 2026, 2.00 pm – Centre sportif de Rochettaz, Pully
Attendance: 1,579
Goalscorers: 5’ Marques, 19’ pen. Alioski, 45’ own goal Beausire, 57’ Marques.
PULLY FOOTBALL (5-4-1): Frangioni; Saldini, Clerc, Boillot, Chavanne, Pinheiro (55’ Parra); Mast (69’ Bogeski), Comisetti (55’ Benelhadj), Beausire, Lüdi (80’ Mehraz); Isabella (55’ D’Aquino).
Substitutes: Lokengi, Degola, Rapp-Djelloul, Ehrbar.
Manager: Jordi Peracaula.
FC LUGANO (3-4-2-1): Gebhardt; Marques (80’ Karimov), Kelvin, Bichsel; Alioski, Zanotti (57’ Carbone), Kendouci, Pihlström (57’ Ajdin); B. Castro (72’ Cimignani), Moncada (72’ Ajeti); Behrens.
Substitutes: von Ballmoos, Papadopoulos, Grgić, Dos Santos.
Manager: Mattia Croci-Torti.
Referee: Zrinko Prskalo.
Assistant referees: Ilco Jancevski and Christophe Loureiro
Booked: Isabella (PUL), Zanotti (LUG), Clerc (PUL).