Milan Skriniar Keen On Achieving Champions League Qualification

Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar is keen on his side picking up three points when they entertain Juventus at San Siro. The Nerazzurri are currently just one point behind both Lazio and AS Roma in the pursuit of the Champions League places and the Slovakian has urged the need to keep their recent winning run going.

He told Inter TV: “There is a lot of will, we have to give everything we have from the start, I hope to be able to win together with the fans. There are a lot of people here and we believe in their support, we want a great result also for their sakes.” Meanwhile, when asked whether the club can prove an obstacle to Juventus winning the league, he added: “No, we only think about ourselves, about our objective of reaching the Champions League. This is our dream.”

Inter Milan started the campaign in a lively fashion under new boss Luciano Spalletti and they were at one stage tipped to compete for the Serie A crown. However, their form dwindled prior to the turn of the year and they have since dropped off to the point that they are vying for the final two places for next season’s Champions League.

A victory over the reigning champions would put them within reach of the top-four league spots with three games to play but anything other than this may witness their downfall. Inter are due to face Lazio in the final day of the Serie A season and many believe that the game may decide whether they can finish in the top-four places or not.

Meanwhile, Skriniar has been associated with a number of high-profile clubs including Barcelona of late, but the Slovakia international has stressed that he has no ambition of leaving the club even if they fail to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Marek Hamsik Not Giving Up On Serie A Title

Napoli captain Marek Hamsik is not giving up on the Serie A crown despite dropping behind Juventus for the first time in 12 matches. The Naples outfit have had a poor week which has included a thumping 4-2 defeat at the hands of AS Roma, and this was allowed by a goalless draw against Inter Milan on Sunday night.

As a result, the club find themselves one point behind the Bianconeri, who have a game in hand versus Atalanta BC. Speaking after the goalless draw versus Inter, Hamsik refused to give up on the Scudetto, and he remains optimistic that the equation will turn in their favour, he said: “We dropped to second place, but there are still 10 games until the end of the season. There are 30 points up for grabs and anything is possible. We had a good game and played better than them, but we couldn’t score. We missed a few chances and we couldn’t win.”
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Marek Hamsik praises Napoli’s ‘patience’ after Atalanta win

Napoli captain Marek Hamsik praised the patience shown by his Napoli teammates as they clinched a 1-0 victory over Atalanta on Sunday. The Naples outfit have not had a fond time with Atalanta in previous seasons, but they made sure of another three points which maintains their lead at the top of the standings.

Atalanta had done the double over Napoli during the previous campaign, and they continued to emerge as a bogey team for the league leaders this season after beating them 2-1 in the Coppa Italia quarter-final earlier in January. As a result, the Slovakia international was pleased to have got the win over the line versus Atalanta, and he is anticipating a similar commitment for the rest of the season, he told the club’s official website: “I had a fever a few days ago and only joined up with the team on Saturday.

“The most important thing was the victory. We beat Atalanta, a team that never stop and recently eliminated us from the Coppa Italia, without forgetting the two defeats from last season. We patiently met our objectives during the 90 minutes, and win that we wanted came. We’re top, but our objective is still far away. Now we’re focused on Bologna, and we can’t wait to play them.”
Both Napoli and Juventus have maintained their winning streak over the past six matches, and it appears that the Scudetto could be decided between them with the likes of Inter Milan, Lazio, and AS Roma dropping off. The Bianconeri picked up a close win over Napoli in the last meeting on the road, and the league leaders all have to do in the reverse fixture, having failed to attain a single point versus the Turin giants since 2010/11 Serie A season.

Meanwhile, Hamsik appears keen on staying put with Napoli for next couple of years at the least, and the 30-year-old looks on course to break the club’s all-time appearance record, having already eclipsed the goalscoring feat earlier this campaign.

Marek Hamsik promises brave celebration if Napoli win Scudetto

Slovakia international Marek Hamsik has revealed that it would be a great moment for the City of Naples, should Napoli secure the Serie A crown during the current campaign. The midfielder has dreamt of winning the Scudetto since his arrival at Napoli, and 10 years on, he sees them leading the league standings whilst becoming the club-captain.

The Azzurri currently hold a slender two-point lead over Inter Milan, who are a further two points ahead of reigning champions Juventus. As a result, Hamsik’s dream of winning the title is slowing coming into fusion, although he is not taking anything for granted with plenty of games left in the season.

Speaking on Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli, Hamsik revealed that the triumph would just not a personal achievement, and it would have a massive impact on the city in itself. The Slovak is found to have his body inked with a number of tattoos and he has a space reserved, should Napoli end Juventus’ recent dominance and clinch the Scudetto this term, he said: “Winning would be something incredible, the whole Naples deserves it. We are currently doing well, we’re on the right path. Napoli had a great start to the season but we can’t afford to let this go to our head. I have many tattoos, but there’s a spot on my body that I left empty in case we win the Scudetto.”

Meanwhile, Hamsik has also not given up on the club’s chances of progressing further in the Champions League, although they face must-win games against both Shakhtar Donetsk and Feyenoord in order to stand a reasonable chance of making the last-16 of the elite competition, he added: “We believe in it because we played a beautiful game against Shakhtar and now have a tough challenge in Rotterdam (against Feyenoord), where we have to win and hope for Manchester City to do the same.”

Slovakia Manager Wary of Scotland Threat with Leigh Griffiths

Slovakia managerJan Kozak says that he is concerned about the threat of Scotland in the latter stages of the World Cup 2018 qualification group, as the team appears to be better than ever due to the presence of a strong Celtic factor.

Scotland are back in the race for World Cup 2018 qualification after moving within a point behind Slovakia after the latest round of results. Slovakia appeared to be in a comfortable position heading into the last three matches, but a 2-1 loss against England in the latest qualifier led to the team dropping perilously close. Scotland were able to get an uninspiring 2-0 victory over strugglers Malta even at home.

Ahead of this match,Kozak claims that the philosophy of the Scottish national team has changed with the manager Gordon Strachan taking a lot of influences from the Celtic team in order to improve the national team as a whole. It is not surprising considering that Celtic have the strongest representation of players at the national team and some of them are extremely important – like Leigh Griffiths.

The Celtic striker has been in excellent form at the start of the campaign and will once again be key in this game. Stuart Armstrong, James Forrest, Scott Brown, and Craig Gordon are some of the other Celtic names in the squad.

“The philosophy of the Scotland team has changed after we beat them 3-0. The body of the team is made up by Celtic players and they have a wide range. They are now playing  really well. I do not want to talk about individuals because football is a team game. The Scottish team has a strong team with a lot of personalities, starting with the goalkeepers, with great defence and  ending with the excellent Griffiths as striker,” said Kozak.

Albert Rusnak Joins up with Slovakia Squad from Real Salt Lake

Real Salt Lake will be without Albert Rusnak next week, as the Slovakian has been called up for the World Cup qualifying games.

The Slovakian team will be up against Slovenia and England in back-to-back World Cup qualification matches. Victory in these games is extremely important for Slovakia, who sit second in the table with a one-point advantage over Slovenia after six matches. Jan Kozák’steam even has the possibility of catching with England, who are only two points ahead. As a result, Slovakia may need the help of a very best player on their books and Albert Rusnak is certainly one of those names.

The Real Salt Lake forward has been in fine form this season, and he has scored in the recent league match against San Jose Earthquakes. The 23-year-old has managed to grab six goals and nine assists in 22 league appearances this season. His attacking intent will be extremely important for Slovakia, who has scored 12 goals in the six group matches.

As a result, Slovakia are the best attacking team in the division after having scored two more than England. The national team, though, have conceded four goals in the six group matches. Real Salt Lake manager Mike Petke was in praise of Rusnak after the win over San Jose Earthquakes.

“Albert is the type of player that sees plays 2 or 3 seconds ahead of everyone else, and that’s why he is so valuable to us,” said Mike Petke. The recent run of form for players like Albert Rusnak has helped Real Salt Lake to climb up the table and even think about the possibility of making a push for the top six places. The MSL outfit are not back into action for a league match until September 9 when they take on Vancouver Whitecaps.

SLOVAKIA PM WANTS INVESTIGATION AFTER EURO U-21 EXIT

The Prime Minister of Slovakia Robert Fico wants the continental soccer governing body UEFA to investigate the exit of his country from the group stage of the Under-21 Championship, according to reports by the BBC.

Italy and Germany progressed as the Slovaks and Polish side crashed out of the group stage of the tournament. But Fico wants more answers. He sent a letter to the body, describing happenings as a “farce performed by players from countries advanced in football.”

Italy had defeated Germany 1-0 for both sides to move through to the next round. That was the only score that could have made both teams progress so the PM could be hinting match fixing. Both soccer giants Italy and Germany have denied any collusion to get a mutually favourable result.

Fico asked that UEFA look into the matter and enact rules that would prevent a repeat in subsequent tournaments.
“it is disrespectful towards the athletes themselves, fans and also the countries they represent,” Fico added.

Germany were ahead of Slovakia in terms of goal difference. Italy had the top spot in Group C to progress. Slovakia were second in Group A but Germany beat them to the best placed runners up spot.

Coaches of the concerned teams traded accusations and counter accusations. Italy coach Luigi Di Biagio asked that the Slovak counterpart PavelHapal be banned for his claims. In the German camp, the sporting director Horst Hrubesch denied the allegations, claiming the team only treaded softy in the last few minutes as they were aware of their fate.

Germany would move to play the young lions of England while Italy face Spain in the last four.

Slovakian Forward Leaves Sydney FC

Australian A-league club Sydney FC have ended their association with Filip Holosko, who had been their marquee player for the past two years.

The Slovakia international has returned to Europe upon the expiry of his contract last month. The 33-year-old was on an annual $1.15 million deal, which was not renewed after the Sky Blues opted to recruit Bobo and Milos Ninkovic as their two marquee players for the new season

Filip scored 18 goals during his two-year stint in the Australian A-league, and he leaves Sydney FC after having collected the A-League winners’ medal alongside the premiership. Manager Graham Arnold had some fond words to stay about Filip, who he reckons as one of the nicest persons he has worked with.
He said: “Filip is one of the nicest people I have worked with in football and he has had a fantastic two seasons with Sydney FC. He is a great player and will be remembered fondly by everyone at Sydney FC not just for his football ability but also his character.”

The former Besiktas attacker could pursue a fresh challenge in European football as a free agent this summer, and there is every likeliness that he could receive a huge pick of clubs to choose from. It is yet to be known whether Filip would prefer a new stint in the A-league, but he is nevertheless on the radar of some of Sydney FC’s rivals.

After ending his stint down-under, Filip said about the fondness with his teammates as well as his family, who provided him great support in his footballing venture, he said: “It has been a great season and many thanks to my team-mates who have been outstanding. Also a big thank you to my family who supported me throughout my two years with the club,” said Filip.

SLOVAKIA LOSE TO REP OF IRELAND

Stephanie Roche was on target as the Republic of Ireland women team defeated Slovakia, despite their recent dispute with the Football Association of Ireland.

Ireland werethe victors by the slimmest of margins but it was enough in the game played at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin.

Roche scored the goal from the penalty spot in the second half to hand them the win, despite the team’s refusal to participate in an FAI training camp. The women had issues about their working conditions and they negotiated with the FAI until Thursday morning, ahead of the Monday fixture.

The game was close to being boycotted after the squad slammed the FAI at a press conference. They alleged that they had to change in public toilets for games despite being the senior women team for the Republic. There were also grievances about their contract remuneration.

The Sunderland Ladies player scored her 14th international goal in 52 games to hand the first home victory to newly appointed manager Colin Bell. Bell accepted the coaching role in February but only just supervised the team’s first home fixture.

The home side were persistent in their attacks and they earned the set piece when Megan Connolly was fouled in the box almost immediately after the break. The side were happy to get the victory as they prepare to face Iceland and Scotland in friendly games in the summer before World Cup qualification kicks in.
Katie McCabe was awarded the Player of the Match for her commanding performance against the Slovaks.

Slovakia can make it to the World Cup

Slovakia coach Jan Kozak believes that his team can make it to the World Cup, but it is important that his players remain focused.

He was speaking after the match that saw Slovakia beat Malta.

He said that Scotland is still close behind and they will take advantage if ever his team make a mistake. It is important that they continue to win their games to keep their chance of making it to the World Cup alive.

Jan Kozak said that Slovakia has some good players and that they are following instructions nicely, but there is always the danger that the players become complacent and take their opponents lightly. He said that there is no small team in world football at the momenta and that it is important to remain focus on the pitch.

He wants his players to respect their opponents and ensure that they give their best on the pitch from the first until to the last minute.

Slovakia which is in the same group as England believes that they can make it by finishing second in the group. He said that his team wants to build on the success that saw them participate in the last Euros and that it would be a wonderful achievement for this group to make it to the World Cup in Russia as well.

However, Jan Kozak admitted that it would not be an easy task with the group consisting of good footballing nations such as Slovenia and Scotland as well. This is why he wants his players to focus on the so-called small games and ensure that they get maximum points as there will be tougher games coming up in the future.

He said that it is important that his players remain fit as well if they want to qualify.