Match report: Northern Ireland 1-2 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Steven Davis speaks: “We’ve played a lot worse and won,” says the Northern Ireland captain. “We needed to be a little bit more clinical and test their goalkeeper more often. But certainly there’s a lot of positives we can take from that game.”
“Two sloppy goals” That’s George Saville’s post-match verdict, while his team-mate Will Grigg describes it as “just one of those days” for Northern Ireland. “We’ve got to take chances, we’ve shot ourselves in the foot today,” adds Saville.
Full time: Northern Ireland 1-2 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeeep! An entertaining game is brought to an end and Northern Ireland’s players and their manager will need some time to figure out how on earth they lost this match. Completely against the run of play, Bosnia scored through Haris Duljevic and Elvis Saric, while Will Grigg came off the bench to grab a consolation for the hosts.
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90+4 min: Northern Ireland win another corner, which Bosnia clear unconvincingly. The ball’s goes out for a throw-in and is sent back into the mixer. Jamal Lewis gets the knockdown and Grigg looks certain to score a second, but can’t quite reach the ball. So close.
GOAL! Northern Ireland 1-2 Bosnia and Herzegovina
90+2 min: Another corner from Northern Ireland. Davis sends the ball into the penalty area, where Craig Cathcart gets the flick on. At the far post, Boyce picks out Grigg in the middle and he pokes home from a few yards.
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90+1 min: The fourth official’s board goes up, telling Northern Ireland’s players they have six minutes to salvage something from this match.
89 min: Northern Ireland win yet another corner and once again fail to capitalise from it. Their luck this afternoon has been wretched, but they have only themselves to blame for not getting something from this game.
88 min: Steven Davis wins a corner for Northern Ireland. Boyce wins the header from Cathcart’s delivery, trying to find Will Grigg. Duljevic hacks clear for Bosnia.
87 min: Bosnia goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic goes down injured again after contesting a high ball with Saville, incurring the not inconsiderable wrath of the Windsor Park crowd. After more treatment, he’s passed fit to continue.
85 min: Sehic is in the thick of the action again after playing the ball out from the back and passing it straight to George Saville. He pings it forward, teeing up Boyce, but he fires straight at the goalkeeper. It’s just not going to be Northern Ireland’s day - they’ve played very well and don’t deserve to lose, but have been severely punished for two lapses in concentration.
82 min: Bosnia goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic wins a free-kick after being challenged by Craig Cathcart. He’s then booked for time-wasting while dilly-dallying over the resulting free-kick. After minimal contact from Cathcart, it was important he took a very long time to check his neck muscles were all in working order.
79 min: Stuart Dallas crosses from the right again and the ball looks to be on a plate for Liam Boyce. Toni Sunjic intercepts with a good defensive header.
76 min: Bosnia substitution: Goran Zakaric on for Eldar Civic. Northern Ireland substitution: Jamie Ward on for Niall McGinn.
75 min: Duljevic cuts in from the left and picks up a wonderful Edin Visca 60-yard cross from deep. He beats a defender and curls the ball past Bailey Peacock-Farrell, only to see his fine effort hit the upright. A let-off for Northern Ireland.
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73 min: Liam Boyce sends a cross into the Bosnia penalty area, where Craig Cathcart steers it goalwards with a deft back-heel. His effort is intercepted and Bosnia clear their lines.
70 min: Stuart Dallas picks up a pass into the penalty area from Steven Davis, but his attempt to drill the ball across the face of Bosnia’s goal is intercepted by the substitute Rade Krunic, who had tracked his run.
69 min: Northern Ireland double-substitution: Will Grigg and Liam Boyce on for Kyle Lafferty and Conor McLaughlin. Northern Ireland switch to a back three with two wing-backs and two strikers.
68 min: Bosnia substitution: Elvis Saric off after scoring an opportunistic goal, Rade Krunic on. Elvis has left the building.
66 min: Well that’s a shame for Northern Ireland. Craig Cathcart sells his goalkeeper short with a headed back-pass, allowing Elvis Saric to nip in and nick the ball before slotting home into an empty net.
GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-2 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Oh dear. With Northern Ireland dominating again, a horrendous defensive blender allows Bosnia and Herzegovina to double their lead.
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63 min: Stuart Dallas and Niall McGinn link up well down the left flank and McGinn pulls a low cross towards the near post, where it’s cleared. Lafferty wanted it at the back stick and was unable to get across to convert the delivery. Had he done so, it would have been a remarkably similar goal to Bosnia’s opener.
61 min: Staurt Dallas releases Lewis down the left touchline and the youngster pulls the ball back into the penalty, but it’s cleared. Moments later, Lewis is penalised harshly as he tries to get the ball back into the penalty area.
59 min: Edin Visca goes down injured after a tackle from Jamal Lewis, who’s been very impressive on this, his competitive debut for Northern Ireland. Free-kick for Bosnia.
58 min: Lafferty limps to the sideline nursing an injury to his right knee. He hobbles back into action, while Will Grigg warms up on the touchline.
56 min: Kyle Lafferty is down and receiving treatment after tackling Toni Sunjic. He looks in quite a lot of distress.
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55 min: Northern Ireland continue to send in good crosses from the left and right wings. The latest falls for Conor McLaughlin, who heads over the bar.
53 min: The free-kick is sent into the penalty area. Jonny Evans gets the flick-on towards the far post, where Kyle Lafferty side-foots straight at the goalkeeper. He blocks and the ball loops up in the air and drops kindly for Saville, whose volley is blocked.
51 min: That elbow earned Dzeko a yellow card, in case you’re wondering. Northern Ireland win a free-kick wide on the left when Jamal Lewis is fouled near the touchline.
50 min: Jonny Evans is poleaxed by an elbow from Edin Dzeko as the pair contest a high ball. Dzeko was watching the ball, but led with his arm and caught Evans across the jaw. The Northern Ireland defender receives treatment and looks in a lot of pain, but is fit to continue.
48 min: Niall McGinn sends in a wonderful cross from the right touchline and Stuart Dallas looks certain to score. Instead of going for the diving header from six yards, he tries a side-foot volley. He fails to connect properly, sending the ball into the turf - it bounces upwards and Ibrahim Sehic tips it over the bar for a corner.
Second half: Northern Ireland 0-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
46 min: Play resumes with Bosnia kicking off second half proceedings. They lead by the only goal of the game and can consider themselves very fortunate, having been outclassed for long periods of the first 45 minutes.
Northern Ireland 0-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Half-time at Windsor Park: Northern Ireland looked likely to rout Bosnia at one point, having completely bossed them for the opening 30 minutes. Their failure to capitalise on their dominance was punished when they switched off temporarily and conceded a Haris Duljevic goal. Stay tuned to find out if they can turn things around in the second half.
45+1 min: Oliver Norwood shoots high and wide from just outside the Bosnia penalty area.
45 min: Oliver Norwood whips a cross towards the far post, where Kyle Lafferty is lurking with intent. It’s a fine cross, but just a couple of inches too high for the striker.
44 min: With his opposite number on a yellow card and quite clearly afraid to tackle him, Niall McGinn elects not to run at and take on Eldar Civic but send in an early cross instead. It’s a poor decision and his delivery is wayward.
40 min: That goal seems to have settled Bosnia, who have enjoyed more possession since scoring than they did in the opening 30 minutes. The Windsor Park crowd has, for the time being at least, been silenced by Duljevic’s goal.
38 min: Completely against the run of play, Northern Ireland go behind on the back of two defensive lapses that led to an extremely soft goal. Pjanic found an unmarked Edin Djeko on the left flank. The Roma striker’s low cross into the penalty area was an unmarked Haris Duljevic slotted home with ease.
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GOAL! Northern Ireland 0-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Incredibly, Bosnia-Herzegovina take the lead having been completely dominated for over 30 minutes.
34 min: Kyle Lafferty gets a big round of applause for tracking back and dispossessing Sunjic with a sliding tackle that sends the ball towards Row Z.
32 min: Another Northern Ireland corner. The ball’s swung in to the Bosnia penalty area, where the referee spots an infringement on Ervin Zukanovic and awards a free-kick. Bosnia clear their lines.
31 min: Miralem Pjanic is booked for a trip on George Saville, moments after Dzeko had fired straight at Northern Ireland goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell.
29 min: Another good cross from Conor McLoughlin, who tries to pick out Kyle Lafferty near the penalty spot. The ball’s put out for a corner by Toni Sunjic and Lafferty gives his provider a thumbs-up.
27 min: With almost a third of the match gone, it’s difficult to understand how Northern Ireland aren’t in front. They’ve completely outplayed their visitors, whose full-backs look extremely vulnerable indeed. Bosnia are struggling to get the ball out of their own half and Edin Dzeko has barely had a touch.
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27 min: Kyle Lafferty wins a corner for Northern Ireland, but the ensuing inswinger is cleared at the near post.
26 min: At the other end of the field, Besic runs the ball out of play and clatters into an advertising hoarding. The fans nearby are predictably sympathetic.
24 min: Dallas releases Jamal Lewis with a clever pass down the left wing, but Muhamed Besic is able to get back and put a stop to the midfielder’s gallop.
23 min: Now Steven Davis tries his luck, shooting high and wide from the edge of the Bosnia penalty area.
22 min: Stuart Dallas shoots high and wide from distance. The score remains 0-0, but Bosnia are getting slaughtered here.
20 min: Relentless pressure from Northern Ireland. This time, Conor McLaughlin sends in a cross and George Saville comes this close to sliding it home from the edge of the six-yard box.
17 min: Niall McGinn is absolutely roasting Civic down the right wing. He beats him for speed again and gets in a cross, which is headed clear. The ball comes back towards McGinn and he drives towards the penalty area and unleashes a diagonal rasper that Ibrahim Sehic can only parry clear.
16 min: Already on a yellow card, Civic sarcastically applauds the referee after being correctly penalised for barging into Craig Cathcart. The word’s “disciplinary” and “tightrope” spring to mind.
14 min: Niall McGinn makes an over-lapping run down the right flank and picks up the ball from Steven Davis. He takes it past Civic and sends in a cross, but it’s too high for Kyle Lafferty.
12 min: Bosnia get forward with Miralem Pjanic on the ball. He plays it to Haris Duljevic on the left flank, but the winger controls the ball with his hand under pressure from a green shirt. Northern Ireland are doing very well here.
10 min: Bosnia left-back Eldar Civic gets yellow card for a bad tackle on Steven Davis. It was late and high and the Sparta Prague man is perhaps lucky he didn’t get sent off. Remember, Bosnia have no defensive cover on their bench. Roberet Prosinecki only brought four fit defenders and found out yesterday that one of them is suspended.
8 min: Bosnia are struggling to settle here, their players apparently rattled by Northern Ireland’s intense, in-your-face approach. The visitors have already abandoned their plan to play the ball out from the back and goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic is now lumping the ball forward with gay abandon.
7 min: Bosnia win a free-kick wide on the left, halfway inside the Northern Ireland half. Miralem Pjanic’s whipped cross from deep bounces straight through to Bailey Peacock-Farrell in the Northern Ireland goal.
5 min: Gojko Cimirot handles the ball a few yards outside his own penalty area, giving Northern Ireland a free-kick in a good position. Oliver Norwood shoots over the bar.
4 min: It’s been a lively start and Northern Ireland have roared out of the traps, buoyed by the enthusiasm of their vocal home support. Northern Ireland have clearly opted to target Muhamed Besic, who is looking uncomfortable in his unfamiliar role as a makeshift right-back.
1 min: There’s an early shout for a penalty as George Saville goes down under a challenge from Ervin Zukanovic in the Bosnia penalty area. The referee isn’t having it and waves play on. Replays suggest that Northern Ireland’s incensed fans have every right to be annoyed.
Northern Ireland v Bosnia is go!!!
1 min: Following a minute’s applause for the late Northern Ireland and Burnley legend Jimmy McIlroy, play gets under way. Northern Ireland kick off, playing in green shirts, white shorts and green socks. Bosnia – with apologies to “Herzegovina” – play in white shirts, blue shorts and white socks.
Not long now: The teams march out on to the pitch to a warm round of applause from what looks like a full house. Bosnia and Herzegovina have brought around 300 fans for today’s contest. A handful of them appear to be wearing military style camouflage jackets and sunglasses, which is quite a bold fashion statement given the location.
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A presentation: Steven Davis is making his 102nd appearance for Northern Ireland today. The Southampton midfielder was presented with a commemorative cap pitch-side before the game, to mark his century.
A weird nugget of trivia from Sky Sports: For unexplained reasons, Robert Prosinecki has only brought four defenders to Belfast and one of them is – you won’t believe this – suspended from his time in the under-21s. Hence the presence of midfielder Muhamed Besic at right-back.
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Northern Ireland v Bosnia line-ups
Northern Ireland: Peacock-Farrell, McLaughlin, Lewis, Evans, Cathcart, Saville, Davis, Norwood, McGinn, Lafferty, Dallas
Subs: Carson, McGovern, Smith, McNair, Ferguson, Evans, Jones, Whyte, Washington, Boyce, Ward, Grigg
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Sehic, Civic, Besic, Sunjic, Zukanovic, Pjanic, Cimirot, Saric, Visca, Duljevic, Dzeko
Subs: Kjosevski, Piric, Nastic, Prcic, Krunic, Zakaric, Milosevic, Bajic, Kodro
Those teams ...
Leeds goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell gets the nod to make his first competitive start for Northern Ireland. The 21-year-old, whose only previous appearance came as a substitute in the goalless friendly with Panama in May, was preferred ahead of Michael McGovern and Trevor Carson. Captain Steven Davis returned after missing the trip to Central America through injury. Josh Magennis misses out through injury, while Kyle Lafferty starts up front.
Bosnia coach Robert Prosinecki includes captain Edin Dzeko and Juventus midfielder Miralem Pjanic in his line-up. Middlesbrough midfielder Muhamed Besic, on loan from Everton, will line up at right-back with Darko Todorovic suspended.
Robert Prosinecki speaks ...
“This is an interesting tournament because it is a chance to go to the European Championship,” said Bosnia and Herzegovina’s manager. “It’s more interesting than friendly matches: we’ve got good opponents with several top class players. It’s going to be a good test for us. We believe in the squad, they have shown that they can play, and we will play to win against Northern Ireland. We are preparing well.”
Thursday
League A, Group 1: Germany 0-0 France
B1: Czech Republic 1-2 Ukraine
B4: Wales 4-1 Republic of Ireland
C3: Norway 2-0 Cyprus, Slovenia 1-2 Bulgaria
C4: Lithuania 0-1 Serbia, Romania 0-0 Montenegro
D1: Kazakhstan 0-2 Georgia, Latvia 0-0 Andorra
D4: Armenia 2-1 Liechtenstein, Gibraltar 0-2 Macedonia
Friday
A3: Italy 1-1 Poland
B2: Turkey 1-2 Russia
C1: Albania 1-0 Israel
C4: Lithuania 0-1 Serbia, Romania 0-0 Montenegro
D3: Azerbaijan 0-0 Kosovo, Faroe Islands 3-1 Malta
Saturday
A2: Switzerland 6-0 Iceland
A4: England 1-2 Spain
B3: Northern Ireland 1-2 Bosnia-Herzegovina
C2: Finland 1-0 Hungary, Estonia 0-1 Greece
D2: Belarus 5-0 San Marino, Luxembourg 4-0 Moldova
Sunday
A1: France 2-1 Netherlands
B1: Ukraine 1-0 Slovakia
B4: Denmark 2-0 Wales
C3: Bulgaria 1-0 Norway, Cyprus 2-1 Slovenia
D1: Georgia 1-0 Latvia
D4: Macedonia 2-0 Armenia, Liechtenstein 2-0 Gibraltar
Monday
A3: Portugal 1-0 Italy
B2: Sweden 2-3 Turkey
C1: Scotland 2-0 Albania
C4: Serbia 2-2 Romania, Montenegro 2-0 Lithuania
D1: Andorra 1-1 Kazakhstan
D3: Kosovo 2-0 Faroe Islands, Malta 1-1 Azerbaijan
Tuesday
A2: Iceland 0-3 Belgium
A4: Spain 6-0 Croatia
B3: Bosnia-Herzegovina 1-0 Austria
C2: Hungary 2-1 Greece, Finland 1-0 Estonia
D2: San Marino 0-3 Luxembourg, Moldova 0-0 Belarus
Michael O'Neill speaks ...
“It will be a tough game, there is no doubt about that,” said Northern Ireland’s manager in the build-up to today’s game. “They were unlucky to miss out on a play-off spot for the World Cup finals, like ourselves. They lost one game really - it was Cyprus that cost them.
“They have Miralem Pjanic, who is one of the top midfielders in Europe, and Edin Dzeko, a renowned European striker as well. I think they will provide a tough, tough game for us with Robert Prosinecki coming in for his first competitive game - they will prove a very stiff challenge.”
Team news
Hearts defender Aaron Hughes has been ruled out with a calf injury and has returned to Edinburgh for treatment, while Bolton Wanderers striker Josh Magennis is also in doubt after missing training with a calf niggle of his own yesterday. Magennis, Kyle Lafferty, Liam Boyce and Will Grigg are all vying for starting positions up front, while manager Michael O’Neill must choose his goalkeeper from the trio of Trevor Carson, Bailey Peacock-Farrell and Michael McGovern.
Bosnia and Herzogovina are managed by one-time Portsmouth legend Robert Prosinecki and number Edin Dzeko and Miralem Pjanic among the star players they have brought to Belfast. Bojan Nastic, Ermin Bicakcica and Ognjen Vranjes have all been ruled out through injury, while left-back Eldar Civic is a major doubt.
The Nations League explained
Still struggling to get to grips with the competition’s format? Let the good people at Tifo Football set you straight with this handy explainer.
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Nations League: Northern Ireland v Bosnia-Herzegovina
Greetings one and all. Welcome to the Guardian’s coverage of today’s Nations League match, in which Northern Ireland meet Bosnia and Herzegovina for the very first time. In the second tier of this new competition, both teams are in Group 3 with Austria, who have yet to play. Kick-off is at 2.00pm (BST), but stay tuned for team news and build-up in the meantime.
