The Bitola „green-and-whites“ finally played a match in which they dominated from the first minute to the last and left no doubt about who would take the three points.
Although Macedonia GP are traditionally a difficult opponent for Pelister, the hosts managed to take the initiative from the start and create more chances from which they could have scored.
As early as the ninth minute, Bulatović was played through after an unsuccessful offside trap, but surrounded by opposing players, he failed to get an accurate shot on target. Three minutes later, Spirovski received a cutback but sent a weak effort along the ground. Luka Bulatović was played through again in the opponents„ penalty area in the 19th minute, but Jankov “threw himself” at his feet and even managed to win a foul. During the next attack in the 22nd minute, Boskovski was found on the right with a cross, but his effort was also poor and along the ground, making the ball an easy catch.
The visitors from Skopje began combining in the opponents’ half midway through the first half, and in the 23rd minute Guerrero ran onto a poorly worked move, but found himself offside. Džangarovski was noticeable in the first half, and in the 33rd minute he had an attempt of his own, but it was unsuccessful.
Two goalkeeper interventions stood out: in the 26th minute, Bulatović forced Jankov to concede a corner with a free-kick, while in the 42nd minute Aidogan managed to get an accurate shot away on the run with a defender beside him, and Jovchevski also turned it behind for a corner. Between those two situations, Pelister had three more chances through Krstevski on the right and Kereim on the left, but the most serious came in the 31st minute, when Spirovski beat Jankov with a header, only for Pecov to clear the ball off the goal line.
Pelister’s final threat before the break came after Bulatović’s delivery from a short corner, with Kire Ristevski heading over the crossbar.
In the second half, in the 49th minute, the hosts finally had reason to celebrate after Spirovski’s move was continued down the left through Kerim, who played in captain Mirko Ivanovski. He calmly controlled the ball before firing an unstoppable shot. During the lull that followed, another key moment occurred: a red card for Guerrero after mutual pushing and fouling with Zdravković, although the visiting player was punished for protesting to the referee. That left the „Lions“ with minimal chances, but they continued to fight bravely, and in the 64th minute Pecov was alone on the right, only for Jovchevski to clear the ball.
Serbijanac made it 2:0 with a composed move that began in his own half. He collected the ball in the middle of the pitch and took advantage of the numerical superiority and the space left open, then, after breaking into the penalty area, spectacularly found the back of Jankov’s net.
The hosts had three more good chances before the end, the first following a move involving Ristovski and Petkovski, while in the second Spiroski found Petkovski beautifully, but he was inaccurate on both occasions. In stoppage time, Angelevski and Mrmachevski created a chance of their own, but Jankov managed to save.
With these three points, Pelister are now in ninth place in the table with 29 points, with the three positions leading to the VMFL directly behind them. At the moment, Rabotnicki have 25 points (and a game in hand), Macedonia GP are second from bottom with 24, and Shkupi have just one point.
In the next round, Macedonia GP host Rabotnicki, while Pelister visit Brera.
