Legia Warszawa showed the kind of resilience that fuels title challenges as they held off a spirited Motor Lublin fightback to win 3-2 in a five-goal thriller at Arena Lublin in the PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa. The visitors looked in control at times, but Motor’s never-say-die attitude forced Legia to dig deep and protect their lead until the final whistle.

Legia make their quality count

Legia started the match with confidence and tried to dictate the tempo from the opening exchanges. Their quality in possession created several openings, and they were rewarded when they took the lead with a well-worked move that ended with a clinical finish. The Warsaw side doubled their advantage shortly afterwards to silence much of the home support, leaving Motor Lublin with a steep mountain to climb before half-time.

Motor Lublin refused to fall apart. The home team responded with more urgency and pulled a goal back before the interval, giving themselves real hope for the second half. That strike changed the atmosphere around the stadium and set up a tense second half for the league’s record champions.

End-to-end finish in Lublin

The second half opened with Motor full of energy, but Legia showed their experience by regaining their two-goal cushion on the hour mark. That goal proved vital because Motor Lublin kept pushing and found another way back into the contest late on, setting up an uncomfortable final few minutes for the visitors. Legia then showed their defensive discipline to see out the match and take all three points.

For neutral observers, this was the Ekstraklasa at its entertaining best: fast-paced, competitive, and full of momentum swings. For Motor Lublin, the narrow defeat will hurt, but their performance once again underlined that they can compete with the biggest clubs in Polish football on their own ground.

Result at a glance

• League: PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa
• Match: Motor Lublin 2-3 Legia Warszawa
• Impact: Legia collect three valuable away points; Motor Lublin take encouragement despite the defeat