SM
Newcastle vs. West Ham: 10 hrs 46 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
SN
World Cup Qualifying - Europe | Group Stage
Mar 24, 2021 at 7.45pm UK
Stadion Rajko Mitić
RO

Serbia
3 - 2
Rep. Ireland

Vlahovic (40'), Mitrovic (69', 75')
Pavlovic (89')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Browne (18'), Collins (86')

Stephen Kenny: 'We deserved a penalty against Serbia'

:Headline: Stephen Kenny: 'We deserved a penalty against Serbia': ID:440588: from db_amp
Aleksandar Mitrovic came off the bench to condemn the visitors to a 3-2 World Cup qualifying loss.

Stephen Kenny left Serbia convinced the Republic of Ireland would not have lost their opening World Cup qualifier had they been awarded the penalty they deserved.

Kenny's men took a surprise lead in the Group A fixture at the Rajko Mitic Stadium in Belgrade when Alan Browne ended their wait for a goal after 11 hours and 18 minutes of football, but ultimately ended up on the wrong end of a 3-2 scoreline.

However, there were devastated not to be awarded a second-half spot-kick when striker Aaron Connolly went down under Stefan Mitrovic's challenge at 1-1, only for Italian referee Davide Massa to wave away his claims.

Aaron Connolly was denied a penalty by referee Davide Massa in the Republic of Ireland's 3-2 defeat to Serbia (Novak Djurovic/PA)

Manager Kenny, whose wait for a first victory now stretches to nine games, said: "We've had a blatant penalty rejected, absolutely. We've watched it back and Aaron has touched the ball away and Mitrovic, the centre-back, has fouled him.

"That's a penalty go to 2-1 up and we're not losing the game at 2-1 up in the second half, that's for sure. We're not saying we definitely would have won it, but I don't see us losing it.

"That's a very pivotal moment in the game."

Browne's 18th-minute header from Callum Robinson's inviting cross handed Ireland the perfect start, but Dusan Vlahovic levelled before the break before substitute Aleksandar Mitrovic took the game by the scruff of the neck.

Aleksandar Mitrovic was Serbia's two-goal hero in their defeat of the Republic in Belgrade (Novak Djurovic/PA)

Mitrovic had only been on the pitch for five minutes when he beat 21-year-old keeper Mark Travers, making his competitive debut for his country, with an audacious chip, and then headed his side into a 3-1 lead with 15 minutes remaining, in the process establishing himself as Serbia's joint-record international goalscorer on 38.

Fellow substitute James Collins reduced the deficit four minutes from time, but a late flurry of activity failed to produce an equaliser.

Kenny said: "The concession of the second goal is a disappointing goal, we know that and then the third goal, we're wondering how we're 3-1 down.

"I felt all of the substitutes made an impact – James Collins got the goal back and it's a late rally for the equaliser, which we don't quite get.

"We're disappointed to lose the game, really, and it hurts. Serbia are a very good team with a lot of very good attacking players, but we feel disappointed to lose."

amp_article__440588 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2021-03-24 23:54:09:
html db last update - 2021-03-24 23:54:09 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Stephen Kenny

Click here for more stories about Serbia

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd124441313016
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Ipswich TownIpswich121651323-109
19Crystal Palace121561017-78
20Southampton121110924-154
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .