North Macedonia Earn Gutsy Draw Against Bulgaria After Surviving Late Penalty Shout in UEFA Nations League

• Bulgaria hosted North Macedonia in their opening game in the group in the UEFA Nations League today
• Bulgaria took an early lead thanks to Kiril Despodov but did nothing more to earn all three points against North Macedonia
• North Macedonia proved that they are a force to be reckoned with as they dominated the second half against Bulgaria

North Macedonia are not to be taken lightly.

The European side’s gutsy performances have caught the eye of the footballing world and they produced another in the UEFA Nations League earlier.

The team ranked 69th in the world produced a determined performance against a higher-ranked Bulgaria away from home.

Bulgaria took the lead of the game in the 13th minute thanks to Kiril Despodov. The home fans would be forgiven for thinking that that was the beginning of a big win.

The rest of the first half was largely uneventful as neither side looked threatening.

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That changed in the second half when North Macedonia turned up the heat.

The visitors got one back as early as the 50th minute thanks to Milan Ristovski. The goal had to be checked by the Video Assistant Referee for a potential offside but was allowed to stand.

The North Macedonian side continued to dominate the rest of the half as they pushed for a second. Darko Velovski was instrumental for the side as they dominated proceedings in the second half. Bulgaria hardly had anything to talk about in the second 45 but their fans were upset with the referee's final decision.

The hosts thought they had a penalty in the last minute of extra time when the referee awarded a spot-kick for a handball in the box. VAR had a look and the decision was overturned. The call had fans booing in the stands as Bulgarian supporters felt robbed.

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UEFA Nations League: Poland stage comeback to sink Wales in Group D opener

Poland have won their UEFA Nations League Group D opener staged at Stadion Miejski on Wednesday evening, June 1, against Wales.

The hosts came from a goal down to sink Rob Page's men in a thrilling clash of the international break.

Wales will now shift their focus to the upcoming World Cup play-off final where they will play the winner between Scotland and Ukraine.