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Slovakia continued their impressive form

Slovakia continued their impressive form in the last few months after earning yet another Euro 2016 qualification victory.

The 2-1 score against Macedonia helped the Slovakian’s stay in touch with Spain at the top of the table. Slovakia were never expected to be in amongst the leaders, as the season draws to a close. The win against Macedonia was the sixth successive in all competitions and one that places the team’s dark horses for the upcoming final in France. Manager Jan Kosak has been able to achieve this run with relatively the same group of players who have part of the previous managerial reign.

Former world champions Spain were expected to top the group quite comfortably. It was largely thought that Slovakia will be fighting along with the likes of Ukraine for the second or even the third spot. However, Martin Skrtel’s team find themselves with a three-point advantage over Spain going into the final round of fixtures. The national team has now won all of their qualifying matches. Spain have a slender advantage in terms of goal difference and this could likely to come into force when the two teams meet each other in September. This game will potentially determine the leader of the group.

“They weren’t pushing so hard, we were just playing our game. In the second half we stopped playing a little bit but we managed,” said midfielder Viktor Pecovsky after the victory.Saláta gave the lead for Slovakia after just eight minutes while Napoli midfielder MarekHamsik doubled their advantage just before half-time. Macedonia’s Hasaniwas sent off late in the match and thus prevented any comeback from the opposition. After a few wobbles at the start of the qualification campaign, Spain appear to have recovered well and will be a formidable opposition Slovakia’s hopes of topping the group.

STILL HOPE

Slovakia remain in with a chance to qualify for the World Cup 2014 with only a few matches remaining. After all the teams in the group have played eight matches, Slovakia are only a few points behind Greece in the final qualification spot.

They have given them a great chance to make an appearance at the World Cup after managing to beat table leaders Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday. Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel was part of the team that managed this significant victory. After the match, he praised his teammates for being part of this huge victory.

Slovakia are four points off the top of the table and they are third in the table. Even though Skrtel said that he believed Slovakia can qualify for the World Cup, he thinks that it will not be easy due to the monumental challenge ahead of them. Slovakia can get close to Bosnia-Herzegovina even further when they take on Bosnia-Herzegovina in a home match. The home support will be an important aspect towards pushing them for three points. Incidentally, this win is the first Slovakia have achieved after a long time of continuous draws.

Before this encounter, they had four consecutive draws. National team manager Kozák is not expected to change the side much for the reverse fixture.

“We played really well against a strong opponent. We wanted to stay calm as long as possible and try to score. We kept a clean sheet which was absolutely pivotal for us. Everyone played well on Friday and we did what the coach wanted us to do. It is a great result which means that nothing is lost yet and even though we face a difficult task in our group we are ready to fight until the last game,” said Skrtel, who now looks set to stay with Liverpool.

STARS MUST STAY

Slovakian midfielder Marek Hamsik, who has managed to establish himself as one of the important members of the Italian club Napoli, has said that he hopes that manager Walter Mazzarri and striker Edinson Cavani will remain at the club next season as well.

These three are amongst the important cogs of Napoli. They have been able to transform a club that was fighting to finish in the top half of the table to a club that can challenge Juventus for the title. Napoli will once again qualify for the Champions league next season as they are expected to finish second in the season.

However, several transfer rumours are threatening to break apart the team that has been hugely influential in Italy over the last few years. Edinson Cavani has been linked with a move to some of the top clubs in Europe like PSG and Manchester City. He is expected to cost in excess of £ 40 million, but that is unlikely to worry these mega rich clubs. After helping transform Napoli into a title challenger, Mazzarri has also been attracting attention from several clubs as well.

Even Hamsik has been linked with a move to Chelsea as the replacement for Frank Lampard, but the midfielder is hoping that Cavani and Mazzarri stay at the club next season.
“It’s difficult to think of a Napoli without Cavani and Mazzarri; we would lose a player who has scored more than 100 goals and a coach who has turned us into challengers for the Scudetto. I hope Mazzarri and Cavani don’t go, so that we can make this Napoli great. In the last three years, we have obtained great results and we want to continue like that,” said Hamsik, who has been in great form this season. Hamsik has 10 goals from 36 appearances this season.

THREE HORSE RACE

The Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik has said that he feels that the title race in Italy is now a three horse race, as the likes of Juventus, Inter Milan, and Napoli are fighting out against each other in the table.

Napoli have two points behind Juventus were table, but Inter Milan are not too far behind. They are another two points behind the Napoli with the opportunity to leapfrog Marek Hamsik and his team after this weekend. This is because Napoli will be taking on Inter Milan during the weekend.

Napoli and their players have been extremely wary of speaking about the title race. Even though they are only two points behind Juventus, Napoli found themselves in a similar position last season only for them to falter in the latter stages of the season. As a result, Marek Hamsik has repeatedly stressed that Juventus and Inter Milan are the favourites for the title this season. He has said that even though the club will not be talking about the Scudetto, it remains as one of the objectives for the team. Napoli last won the Italian Serie A title during the period of the Argentine legend Diego Maradona at back in the mid-1980s.

“The favourites for the Scudetto are Juventus, they’re really strong and they’ve shown they can compete with the best teams in Europe in the Champions League. I still don’t want to talk about the Scudetto but it’s pointless to deny the fact that it’s our objective. There’s also Inter, they’ve won a lot over the last few years. They’ve got a great team and so it’s to be expected that they’ll fight for the Scudetto,” said Marek Hamsik. The Slovakian midfielder has already been one of the best players for Napoli this season by scoring a lot of important goals.

GRIGA TAKES OVER

The Slovakian football association has announced that Stanislav Griga and Michal Hipp will be taking over the national team from Vladimir Weiss.

Vladimir Weiss decided to bring an end to his reign as the national team manager of Slovakia back in January.

The Slovakian football association has announced that Stanislav Griga and Michal Hipp will be taking over the national team from Vladimir Weiss.

Vladimir Weiss decided to bring an end to his reign as the national team manager of Slovakia back in January.

The National football Association has been searching for a replacement since then, but the prospect of appointing to managers to work side-by-side certainly appears new indeed. However, the national football Association is extremely confident that they both can take Slovakia to new heights. After the appointment, a statement said that both coaches will have equal say on the team matters.

Michal Hipp has been the interim manager of Slovakia ever since the former manager Vladimir Weiss quit his post. He played 10 games for the national team, but ironically, they were for Czechoslovakia and Slovakia.

This was because Michal Hipp played five matches for Czechoslovakia and the remaining five matches for Slovakia following their separation in 1993. He has been the assistant manager for the national team from 2003 to 2006. The Slovakian national team made their bow in a major tournament at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Michal Hipp played a major role in getting the national team to this World Cup.

“Both coaches will have equal competences,” said a statement on the official site of the Slovakian football Federation. The Slovakian national football team managed a quite stunning 3-2 win over Italy in the group stages of the World Cup, although they lost their next match two World Cup finalists Netherlands. Unfortunately, they have failed to make it into the Euro 2012 this summer. The tournament is cohosted by both Poland and Ukraine and will be beginning in less than a month. Slovakia will be aiming to reach the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

SKRTEL NAMED PLAYER OF YEAR

Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel has been named as the Slovakian player of the year for the third time in his career.

Martin Skrtel currently plays for Liverpool as the first choice central defender.

Despite the presence of experienced Jamie Carragher in the squad, Martin Skrtel has been the first choice for Kenny Dalglish this season.

His exploits at the back of the Liverpool defence have not gone unnoticed, as he has won the Slovakian player of the year award. This is the third time he has won the award in his career, thus making it even more special.

Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel has been named as the Slovakian player of the year for the third time in his career.

Martin Skrtel currently plays for Liverpool as the first choice central defender.

Despite the presence of experienced Jamie Carragher in the squad, Martin Skrtel has been the first choice for Kenny Dalglish this season.

The Slovakian daily newspaper Pravada runs an annual poll in cooperation with the Slovakian football Federation to determine the best Slovakian footballer of the year. Martin Skrtel has been lucky on a number of occasions to win this award. The Slovakian comes on the back of a victory in the Carling cup.

Liverpool won their first trophy since 2006 after they defeated Cardiff city in the final of the Carling cup. The penalty shootout victory may not have been the most convincing for Liverpool, but it did the job. It has provided Liverpool with an impetus to go for the FA Cup as well this season.

This Slovakian player of the year award for Martin Skrtel has been the closest in many seasons, as the Liverpool defender managed to win the award by a close margin of just three points. The award has been running for 19 years now and this has been the closest margin of victory by any player. “What can I say? Three points is just one vote. I won two trophies in two days. It’s fantastic,” Martin Skrtel said after picking up the award in a ceremony held in Trnava. So far, the Liverpool defender has won it in 2007, 2008, and 2011.