Slovakia snatch last-gasp win over Northern Ireland | OneFootball

Northern Ireland’s World Cup qualifying campaign ended in heartbreak as Slovakia snatched a stoppage-time winner to claim a 1-0 victory in Kosice.

Tomas Bobcek struck from a Laszlo Benes corner in the first minute of added time, leaving the visitors stunned despite protests over a challenge on Daniel Ballard during the build-up.

The home side had already seen two second-half efforts from Lukas Haraslin and David Strelec chalked off, but Bobcek’s strike finally broke the deadlock, prompting celebrations on the Slovak bench.

Northern Ireland battled bravely but struggled to carve out clear chances. Their woes were compounded when Ballard received a second yellow card in the closing moments.

Despite the loss, Michael O’Neill’s team will still take part in the March play-offs, thanks to Croatia’s 3-1 win over the Faroe Islands, which confirmed them as one of Europe’s top Nations League group winners.

Slovakia, meanwhile, travel to Leipzig on Monday with a chance to top Group A if they can beat Germany.