Northern Ireland v Bulgaria

TALKIN’ ’BOUT MY GENERATION Andy Greeves looks back on a memorable period for the Bulgarian national team during the 1990s.

A 2-0 win over Argentina – who had been World Cup runners-up four years earlier – in Lavovete’s third and final group match in Dallas on 30 June suddenly got people thinking about Bulgaria as tournament dark horses. Stoichkov was on target again in the match as Lavovete sealed a second-place finish in Group D and progressed to the knockout phase. The Barcelona forward struck again as Bulgaria drew 1-1 with Mexico in the round of 16, with Penev’s men eventually making it through to the quarter- finals on penalties. From no hopers to dark horses, a 2-1 win over reigning world champions Germany at the Giants Stadium on 10 July brought Bulgaria into the category of genuine contenders for the competition. Having gone behind to a Lothar Matthaus penalty minutes after half-time, Lavovete rallied and goals from Stoichkov and Letchkov booked Penev’s side a place in the last four. Alas a 2-1 semi-final defeat to Italy at the Giants Stadium on 13 July brought an end to Bulgaria’s dreams of World Cup glory. Stoichkov’s penalty in that match was his sixth goal at USA ‘94, which saw him secure the tournament’s Golden Boot along with Russia’s Oleg Salenko. Lavovete crashed to a 4-0 defeat to Sweden in the third-place play-off in Pasadena but that heavy loss did little to detract from what had been a wonderful World Cup for Penev’s men. The likes of Stoichkov, Letchkov, Emil Kostadinov and Krasimir Balakov - all key members of the squad in the mid to late 1990s that was dubbed Bulgaria’s golden generation - went on to secure qualification for the UEFA European Championship finals in 1996, which was the first time the Bulgarian national team reached the Euros. Three of those four players also appeared for Lavovete at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, however since then Bulgaria have only reached one major tournament – UEFA Euro 2004 – which emphasises just how golden a period the 1990s was for the eastern Europeans.

The 17th of November 1993 is a defining date in the history of Bulgarian football. Drawing 1-1 with France in their final FIFA World Cup 1994 qualifier, and with injury time approaching, Lavovete (The Lions) were set to miss out on a place at the final tournament. Bulgaria went into the match at the Parc des Princes in Paris two points behind Les Blues, who held the coveted runners-up spot in European Qualifying Group 6. Moments before the final whistle sounded, French winger David Ginola attempted to cross the ball to teammate Eric Cantona inside the Bulgarian penalty area. Ginola overhit his cross and the ball instead landed at the feet of Bulgaria’s Emil Kremenliev. The left-back started off a swift break which eventually saw Emil Kostadinov score his second goal of the match to send Lavovete to USA ’94 at the expense of France by virtue of a 2-1 win. Despite their heroics in Paris, not much was expected of Lavovete at the 1994 World Cup outside of Bulgaria itself. The team had only once progressed beyond the group stage of the tournament in five attempts, reaching the round of 16 in 1986. Pitted alongside previous competition winners Argentina, African Cup of Nations champions Nigeria and Balkan rivals Greece in Group D at the tournament in America, notions of even repeating that feat in 1994 seemed far-fetched. A 3-0 defeat to Nigeria in their opening group match in Dallas on 21 June compounded Lavovete’s underdog status. But with a talented squad that included Barcelona forward and past European Golden Shoe winner Hristo Stoichkov, Dimitar Penev’s side then laid down a marker at the tournament. Stoichkov’s brace of penalties and further goals from Hamburger SV’s Yordan Letchkov and Levski Sofia’s Daniel Borisov gave them a 4-0 victory over Greece in their second group fixture at Soldier Field in Chicago.

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