Slovakia Edges past Northern Ireland in Controversial Qualifier, Manager O’Neill Criticizes Refereeing
Bratislava, Slovakia – A late goal secured a 1-0 victory for Slovakia over Northern Ireland in their Euro 2024 qualifying match on Friday, but the result was overshadowed by contentious VAR decisions adn post-match accusations from Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill. The loss substantially impacts Northern Ireland’s qualification hopes, relegating them to the lowest seed group for the play-offs, while keeping Slovakia’s chances of automatic qualification alive.
Two Slovakian goals where disallowed by VAR during the match – Lukas Haraslin’s free-kick in the 56th minute due to an obstruction of northern Ireland goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell by Milan Skriniar, and a David Strelec finish eight minutes later for a handball offense. O’Neill believes the refereeing decisions ultimately influenced the outcome, stating, “It was a clear push on Daniel Ballard at the corner, two hands in his back.” He further asserted that the disallowed goals were correctly ruled out,but criticized the inconsistency of officiating throughout the game.
O’Neill specifically pointed to a perceived lack of strength in the referee’s decisions. “The first one was offside, the lines show that clearly, and the second one was handball. you have to look at each incident on its own merit… referee the last incident differently to how you refereed the other two incidents.”
The winning goal arrived late in the game, followed by a red card for Northern Ireland’s Daniel Ballard for a second yellow card offense, and a yellow card for George Saville.Both players will now miss Monday’s match against Luxembourg due to suspension.O’Neill attributed Ballard’s sending-off to provocation from the Slovakian bench, calling the second yellow card “a joke” and stating, “He is a top referee, he has refereed the Champions league final, he should have disallowed the goal.”
the Slovakian victory sparked celebrations from the home side, which O’Neill described as “disappointing,” and he expressed his disappointment that the opposing coach did not shake his hand after the match. Despite his frustrations, O’Neill acknowledged Slovakia’s win, noting, “Ultimately, we congratulate Slovakia as they can go to Germany and try to win the group.”
