Vardar avoided an unpleasant surprise and, with a dramatic comeback, won 1-2 away to Skopje at the „Zelezarnica“ Stadium. The hero for the reigning champions was Goran Zakarić, who scored both goals for the „red-and-blacks“, with the winning goal coming in the third minute of stoppage time.
Skopje played an excellent first half and went into the break with a 1-0 lead after Viktor Angelov found the visitors’ net in the 26th minute. However, the home team failed to hold on to the advantage until the end and were left without any points.
The first major excitement came in the 20th minute, when Gordić took a shot and Manevski was hit on the hand during a sliding challenge. After a lengthy review in the VAR room, during which a possible offside and a potential penalty were examined, it was decided that play should continue.
Six minutes later, Skopje took the lead. Ali Adem broke down the right and sent the ball into the middle, where Viktor Angelov was in the right place and found the back of Vardar’s net.
The conceded goal roused Vardar, who tried to equalise through Danev, Azer Omeragić, Pireš and Matić before the end of the first half, but Kristian Naumovski and Skopje’s defence preserved their advantage.
Vardar continued their offensive after the break. In the 58th minute, Kastañeda had an excellent opportunity, but Naumovski intervened with his foot. Just two minutes later, however, there was nothing the home goalkeeper could do.
Pireš delivered a cross from the left, and Goran Zakarić levelled the score at 1-1 with a close-range header.
Five minutes later, Omeragić found himself in a good position, but shot straight at Naumovski. At the other end, Viktor Angelov could have put Skopje back in front, but this time Taleski rose to the occasion.
In the 81st minute, David Babunski tried from a free kick, but hit the wall, while in the continuation of the move Boban Nikolov had a chance to score with a header, but failed to make proper contact.
When it seemed that the match would end without a winner, Vardar delivered the decisive blow. In the 93rd minute, there was another cross from the left, and Zakarić was once again the best in the air, scoring with a precise header to spark great joy for the champions.
With Zakarić’s two goals, Vardar took three points in a dramatic finish and continued their battle for the top of the table, while Skopje were left without a reward for their good performance in front of the home crowd.
