Macedonia vs. Australia: Score and Report from International Friendly
Macedonia and Australia played out a scoreless draw in a drab international friendlyย Monday night at the Filip II Arena in Skopje, Macedonia.
Fresh off their 2015 Asian Cup-winning campaign, Australia threatened only rarely in a match that frequently resembled a training session. Chances were at a premium in both halves, especially for Macedonia, who managed only a single shot on target over the 90 minutes, per ESPN FC.
But while the result brought little excitement, B/R's Karl Matchett noted that it was a positive development for Macedonia, who have struggled during the current Euro 2016 qualification campaign:
"A 0-0 draw is a step forward for Macedonia in fairness. They have recently been beaten by such luminaries as Belarus and Slovakia, as well as only beating Luxembourg in the last minute at home."
Up next for Macedonia is a trip to Group C leaders Slovakia in Euro 2016 qualifying on June 14. Bosko Gjurovski's team is currently second bottom in the group with three points at the halfway point in the campaign.
Australia will now turn their attention to 2018 World Cup qualifying. The second round of Asian qualifiers begins in June, with the draw set for April 14, per The-AFC.com.
Clear chances were scarce in a first half that was often short on quality.
Macedonia had a first sight of goal in the 11th minute as Marjan Radeski turned his marker and shot off target. One minute later at the other end, Mathew Leckie picked out James Troisi, whose shot deflected wide of the near post.
The best chance of the half came in the 30th minute, when Nathan Burns beat three defenders with deft dribbling inside the box before shooting straight at Martin Bogatinov.
The second half began much as the first, with few chances at either end and little attacking intent shown by either side. In the 51st minute, Australia'sย Massimo Luongo forced a save with a left-footed shot from outside the box. Six minutes later,ย Leckie headed over the bar after latching onto Burns' cross from deep on right.
Australia came closer still in the 66th minute, when Leckie turned and shot inside the box, prompting Bogatinov to make a save. The ball bounced free momentarily, but Macedonia were able to clear.
Macedonia made a rare foray forward in the 76th minute, with Stefan Ristovski sending a cross-shot across the face of goal.
That turned out to be the final opening of note, with both teams simply going through the motions over the final quarter-hour.
