A late and dramatic comeback saw Sloboden beat hosts Junior in what was an incredibly tense encounter between the two sides.
First and foremost, we would like to thank Junior for inviting us to this tournament and congratulate them on their 40-year anniversary. 40 years might seem small compared to many other clubs across the world. However, when you look at how many generations of players, fans, staff, and football fanatics can pass by in that amount of time, you must appreciate what you have and to cherish every moment. 40 years worth of moments is a treasure trove and we hope Junior will enjoy plenty more.
With that being said, our Robins played a game of football we need to talk about.
The first half started in Juniors way, as the yellow-wearing outfit got their first goal early on after a well-taken shot by their number 19 went past Boban Avramoski.
Junior then kept up the pressure, but around the 20th minute, Sloboden got one back through Gjorgji Malov. Our new number nine showed nerves of steel after a fantastic through ball by Gjuner Jusufi.
Unfortunately, our moment of jubilation was cut short when Junior’s men got their lead back to take the score to 2-1. The game would then become end-to-end, as neither side could break the other down for the duration of the first half.
The second half began with only one change in the Robins’ camp seeing Georgi Bozhikov replace Aleksej Aleksovski in midfield. Almost immediately, Malov threatened the keeper with a clinical volley, but the keeper performed a miraculous save to deny Malov his brace. This event foreshadowed how the match would go as what would follow was waves of attacks from Sloboden. Eventually, all that effort would be worth it as a perfectly lobbed pass by Redjep Bislim would find the foot of Andrej Najdovski as the Robins made it 2-2.
It was also around this time that Dimitar Hrgovikj would come on in the place of Güner Yusufi. Even though the move seemed strange as Sloboden was looking for more and more likely to score a winner, Hrgovikj did provide the header that hit the post which then would rebound to Gjorgji Malov who completed our comeback. Cue the scenes of joy.
What followed was park-the-bus-esque defending that would make José Mourinho smile. Junior threw everything they had into the attack, but it was all for naught. It ended 2-3 to Sloboden, and we were crowned the winners of the tournament.
The man of the match from today’s match is nearly impossible to decide as many players delivered a fantastic effort. Still, the Manager decided to hand Nikola Bosheski with the MOTM for his sacrifice and dedication throughout the game.
What followed was euphoria for everyone associated with Sloboden, as this would mark our second tournament win. However, we didn’t just leave with the trophy, but also with two individual awards:
Boban was phenomenal when needed as he proved to be the tournament’s best goalkeeper. Although he conceded three goals, none of them were his fault but rather fell on the shoulders of the defense.
Avramoski only just joined us this winter, and we hope to see more of him in our upcoming league matches.
No one in Kumanovo knew his name and now they can’t help but love him. Redjep Bislim astonished the crowds that went to watch him with his technique on the ball and ability to find his teammates in space. He leaves Dobroshane scoring one goal against Rechica and his assist to Najdovski in today’s match.
We hope he can continue this exciting form into next week!
Our next match sees us travel to Drachevo to face off against SSK Mladinec in the 4.MFL Kisela Voda, as we finally get back to playing league football.
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