The Montenegrin youth football team played to a 1:1 draw against Slovakia today in the opening match of the Elite Round of the European Championship qualifiers.

Montenegro earned a point at the start of the tournament in Georgia, with their upcoming matches against Poland on Saturday and the host team next Tuesday.

The match in Tbilisi featured two distinct halves; Montenegro performed better in the first half, having opportunities to score more than once. The team began strongly, with Tadić getting a chance in the 12th minute, and just four minutes later, the “Falcons” took the lead. Bulatović regained possession in the center, Adžić initiated a play, passing to Tadić on the left, who sent it back across for Camaj to volley into the net.

Halfway through the first half, Slovakia was awarded a corner, and Kumburović made a crucial save from Adamkovič’s attempt. In the 28th minute, Bulatović posed another threat with a long-range shot, but Jokl responded well with a save.

Tadić continued to be influential in the first half, starting another play that eventually saw Camaj blocked after Bulatović’s pass.

The second half saw a shift in momentum, and Slovakia equalized in the 73rd minute. Petruška found space and shot from around 20 meters, but Milović’s misjudgment allowed the ball to slip into the net.

Just two minutes before Slovakia’s goal, Montenegro had a promising chance: Adžić crossed from the right, Vukanić tried to score, but Kučman made a defensive intervention on the goal line.

In the final moments of the match, Milović produced a remarkable save to deny Koša.

– We played very well in the first half, scoring a goal and creating several chances that could have increased our lead. However, we struggled with final passes, preventing us from creating better scoring opportunities. We started the second half strong, but as the game progressed, we lost our rhythm while Slovakia adapted and improved. We squandered possession unnecessarily, draining our energy during transitions. That reckless moment ultimately cost us three points. We kept pushing forward, looked to strengthen our attacks with substitutions, and came close to scoring multiple times. Our next focus is on Poland; we spent a lot of energy today, but I hope we’ll recover and prepare properly – said coach Nenad Vukčević.

The Falcons’ next match is against Poland, scheduled for March 22nd at 11 am local time.

MONTENEGRO – SLOVAKIA 1:1

Tbilisi – David Petraishvili Stadium. Referee: Jovan Kachevski (North Macedonia). Goalscorers: Adžič in the 16th minute for Montenegro, Petruška in the 73rd minute for Slovakia. Yellow cards: Adžić, Djukanović (Montenegro), Kučman (Slovakia).

Montenegro: Ognjen Milović, Miloš Vračar, Zarija Kumburović, Bodin Tomašević, Lazar Maraš, Vasilije Adžić, Danilo Vukanic (from 79. Vuk Vlahović), Andrija Bulatović, Marko Perović (from 70. Stefan Đukanović), Andrej Camaj, Marko Tadić (from 79. Filip Perović).

Slovakia: Jakub Jokl, Marcel Kučman, Samuel Haša, Adam Lami, Pavol Kutka, Robert Petruška (from 90. Šimon Vida), Šimon Faško, Rastislav Korba, František Koša, Denis Adamkovič (from 46. Mihal Pekelski), Oliver Kubka (from 70. Samuel Lusale).

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