For the third consecutive season, the Estonian Super Cup Final proved that 2-0 is by far the most dangerous score in football.

FCI Levadia were cruising in the first half and took the lead in the 17th minute through Dutch midfielder Richie Ephraim Musaba. Three minutes later they had doubled their advantage when Kalju goalkeeper Maksim Pavlov failed to hold onto a rasping shot, only for Levadia's Nigerian striker Ahmad Abdullahi Gero to snaffle the rebound.

Whether standing up or sitting down, the Nõmme Kalju fans, the Pink Panthers (Roose Pantrid) never stopped believing, even as they saw Levadia strike the woodwork on at least two more occasions in the first half.

Shortly before the break, they got their reward. Rommit Siht won the ball for Kalju before finding Nikita Ivanov, who slotted into the far corner from the edge of the penalty area to make it 1-2.

If their first had come against the run of play, there was nothing fortuitous about Kalju's equalizer from Guilherme Henriques Da Silva Carvalho. The 21-year-old Brazilian forward drew his side level with a neat strike.

The scores remained level for almost half an hour, until Bubacarr Tambedou's strike broke Kalju hearts. It finished 3-2, with Levadia taking their ninth Super Cup back to Tallinn.

"The first half was maybe ideal for us, except for the end of the half. These 2-0 leads are slippery, if you don't score a third, anything can happen," Levadia captain Rasmus Peetson told ERR after the game.

"We don't just want to repeat the Estonian championship title in the new season, we also want to be successful in other competitions," Peetson said, outlining Levadia's European ambitions for 2025.

Despite finishing second in the Estonian top-flight in 2024, Kalju failed to beat Levadia last season. However, their comeback to 2-2 on Sunday showed that the defending champions are not invincible.

"It was definitely a disappointment for us. We didn't get off on the right foot. If we can play like we did in the second half all the time, then anything is possible," said Kalju defender Rommi Siht.

"There are definitely teams that can take them down. We might also be one of the teams to give them a tough fight and take points off them this season," Siht added.

The 2025 Estonian men's football season gets underway next weekend. In the opening match of the season, reigning champions FCI Levadia take on newly-promoted Harju JK Laagri at Tallinn's Sportland Arena on Friday, February 28 at 7 p.m.

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