News

[Translate to English:] Erik Jendrisek

Slovakia qualified for its first World Cup finals after battling through some dreadful weather conditions to prevail in Poland. The visitors, looking to bounce back from Saturday's disappointing home defeat to their closest challenger Slovenia - a match in which a win would have seen Slovakia secure a place in South Africa - went ahead early through a Seweryn Gancarczyk own goal and then held on grimly.

FCK forward Erik Jendrisek who went the full distance and his team-mates achieved their first ever qualification for a FIFA World Cup finals since independence, sparking wild scenes of celebration at the final whistle. National head coach Vladimir Weiss proudly stated: “Everybody made a contribution and we made the whole of Slovakia happy. This is a fantastic feeling.”

Adam Nemec, FCK forward and Jendrisek’s compatriot, is celebrating this great success too. Nemec who was on call did not join the Slovak team on their journey to Poland but returned to Kaiserslautern instead. As front-runner Slovakia won maximum points in Poland, Slovenia remained in second place and earned one of eight play-off spots so they can still make it to South Africa.

In Group 5, all matters had been settled prior to kick-off. Dario Damjanovic and Bosnia-Herzegovina were already guaranteed a play-off spot. Despite fielding an unfamiliar line-up, Spain achieved a 5-2 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina. Damjanovic did not enter the field of play. The draw for the play-offs will be held at the Home of FIFA in Zurich on October 19. The four seeded teams will be chosen according to the latest World Ranking which will be published on October 16. The four remaining tickets to the global showcase from the European Zone will be decided on the November 18, after home-and-away play-off ties between the eight best second-placed teams. With France, Russia, Portugal, Greece and Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina is facing a tough competition.

Georges Mandjeck and the national team of Cameroon played a friendly game against Angola in Portugal. The match ended in a goalless draw. The “Untamable Lions” will go in search of vital World Cup qualifying points on November 14, 2009 in Morocco.