UEFA Nations League

Bulgaria vs Northern Ireland, 2024-25 UEFA Nations League, Group Stage

· UEFA Nations League
Bulgaria
  • 40': Kiril Despodov
FT
1 - 0
Northern Ireland

    About

    Bulgaria are hosting Northern Ireland at Hristo Botev Stadium, Plovdiv, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, starting on . The match is a part of the UEFA Nations League.

    Match Timeline

    • 0': Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
    • 0': First Half begins.
    • 3': Attempt blocked. Martin Minchev (Bulgaria) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Fabian Nürnberger.
    • 3': Attempt blocked. Martin Minchev (Bulgaria) left footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is blocked.
    • 3': Corner, Bulgaria. Conceded by Trai Hume.
    • 4': Attempt saved. Georgi Kostadinov (Bulgaria) header from a difficult angle on the left is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Kiril Despodov with a cross.
    • 4': Bailey Peacock-Farrell (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 4': Foul by Zhivko Atanasov (Bulgaria).
    • 4': Attempt saved. Isaac Price (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Shea Charles.
    • 6': Foul by Trai Hume (Northern Ireland).
    • 6': Radoslav Kirilov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 7': Dan Ballard (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 7': Foul by Aleksandar Kolev (Bulgaria).
    • 8': Foul by Radoslav Kirilov (Bulgaria).
    • 8': Trai Hume (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
    • 12': Attempt missed. Aleksandar Kolev (Bulgaria) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Fabian Nürnberger with a cross.
    • 14': Corner, Bulgaria. Conceded by Paddy McNair.
    • 15': Foul by Aleksandar Kolev (Bulgaria).
    • 15': Paddy McNair (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 16': Foul by Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland).
    • 16': Georgi Kostadinov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 18': Foul by Ilia Gruev (Bulgaria).
    • 18': Shea Charles (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
    • 19': Ciaron Brown (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the left wing.
    • 19': Foul by Georgi Kostadinov (Bulgaria).
    • 20': Foul by Dan Ballard (Northern Ireland).
    • 20': Martin Minchev (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 21': Foul by Radoslav Kirilov (Bulgaria).
    • 21': Trai Hume (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 22': Attempt missed. Kiril Despodov (Bulgaria) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.
    • 23': Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
    • 23': Foul by Aleks Petkov (Bulgaria).
    • 25': Delay in match (Bulgaria).
    • 26': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
    • 27': Attempt saved. Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Dion Charles.
    • 27': Foul by Shea Charles (Northern Ireland).
    • 27': Martin Minchev (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
    • 27': Shea Charles (Northern Ireland) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
    • 29': Foul by Paddy McNair (Northern Ireland).
    • 29': Radoslav Kirilov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
    • 29': Paddy McNair (Northern Ireland) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
    • 30': Kiril Despodov (Bulgaria) hits the left post with a right footed shot from outside the box from a direct free kick.
    • 32': Foul by Trai Hume (Northern Ireland).
    • 32': Radoslav Kirilov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick on the left wing.
    • 35': Attempt saved. Aleksandar Kolev (Bulgaria) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Ilia Gruev with a through ball.
    • 37': Foul by Radoslav Kirilov (Bulgaria).
    • 37': George Saville (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 38': Attempt missed. Isaac Price (Northern Ireland) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Dan Ballard with a through ball.
    • 40': Foul by Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland).
    • 40': Ilia Gruev (Bulgaria) wins a free kick on the left wing.
    • 40': Goal! Bulgaria 1, Northern Ireland 0. Kiril Despodov (Bulgaria) right footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Aleksandar Kolev.
    • 43': Attempt saved. Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from the right side of the six yard box is saved in the centre of the goal.
    • 43': Attempt missed. Dan Ballard (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Conor Bradley with a cross.
    • 45': Fourth official has announced 3 minutes of added time.
    • 45'+2': Foul by Aleksandar Kolev (Bulgaria).
    • 45'+2': Shea Charles (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 45'+4': First Half ends, Bulgaria 1, Northern Ireland 0.
    • 45': Second Half begins Bulgaria 1, Northern Ireland 0.
    • 46': Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Aleksandar Kolev.
    • 47': Dimitar Mitov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 47': Foul by Trai Hume (Northern Ireland).
    • 52': Dan Ballard (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
    • 52': Foul by Martin Minchev (Bulgaria).
    • 54': Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Zhivko Atanasov.
    • 58': Attempt blocked. Dion Charles (Northern Ireland) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Jamal Lewis.
    • 59': Foul by Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland).
    • 59': Kiril Despodov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick on the right wing.
    • 59': Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
    • 59': Substitution, Northern Ireland. Shayne Lavery replaces Dion Charles.
    • 61': Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 61': Foul by Ilia Gruev (Bulgaria).
    • 61': Foul by Aleks Petkov (Bulgaria).
    • 61': Shayne Lavery (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
    • 62': Foul by Conor Bradley (Northern Ireland).
    • 62': Ilia Gruev (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 63': Substitution, Bulgaria. Ahmed Ahmedov replaces Aleksandar Kolev.
    • 64': Foul by Ahmed Ahmedov (Bulgaria).
    • 64': Paddy McNair (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 65': Ciaron Brown (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 65': Foul by Martin Minchev (Bulgaria).
    • 68': Offside, Northern Ireland. Shayne Lavery is caught offside.
    • 70': Delay in match (Bulgaria).
    • 71': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
    • 72': Substitution, Bulgaria. Zdravko Dimitrov replaces Radoslav Kirilov.
    • 72': Substitution, Bulgaria. Vasil Panayotov replaces Martin Minchev.
    • 72': Foul by Zdravko Dimitrov (Bulgaria).
    • 72': Shayne Lavery (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
    • 73': Substitution, Northern Ireland. Paul Smyth replaces George Saville.
    • 73': Substitution, Northern Ireland. Callum Marshall replaces Paddy McNair.
    • 75': Offside, Bulgaria. Ahmed Ahmedov is caught offside.
    • 75': Delay in match because of an injury Kiril Despodov (Bulgaria).
    • 76': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
    • 78': Substitution, Bulgaria. Stanislav Ivanov replaces Kiril Despodov because of an injury.
    • 78': Substitution, Bulgaria. Simeon Petrov replaces Georgi Kostadinov.
    • 78': Ahmed Ahmedov (Bulgaria) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
    • 78': Dan Ballard (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 78': Foul by Ahmed Ahmedov (Bulgaria).
    • 80': Foul by Simeon Petrov (Bulgaria).
    • 80': Isaac Price (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the left wing.
    • 81': Foul by Trai Hume (Northern Ireland).
    • 81': Vasil Panayotov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick on the left wing.
    • 81': Trai Hume (Northern Ireland) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
    • 82': Delay in match because of an injury Vasil Panayotov (Bulgaria).
    • 82': Substitution, Northern Ireland. Ali McCann replaces Isaac Price.
    • 83': Substitution, Northern Ireland. Ross McCausland replaces Trai Hume.
    • 83': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
    • 87': Attempt missed. Shayne Lavery (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Jamal Lewis with a cross.
    • 88': Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Zhivko Atanasov.
    • 89': Foul by Callum Marshall (Northern Ireland).
    • 89': Zdravko Dimitrov (Bulgaria) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
    • 90': Attempt missed. Zdravko Dimitrov (Bulgaria) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right from a direct free kick.
    • 90': Fourth official has announced 6 minutes of added time.
    • 90'+1': Fabian Nürnberger (Bulgaria) is shown the yellow card.
    • 90'+1': Offside, Bulgaria. Stanislav Ivanov is caught offside.
    • 90'+3': Aleksandar Kolev (Bulgaria) is shown the yellow card.
    • 90'+3': Foul by Vasil Panayotov (Bulgaria).
    • 90'+3': Shea Charles (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
    • 90'+5': Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Simeon Petrov.
    • 90'+6': Attempt missed. Dan Ballard (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Ross McCausland.
    • 90'+7': Second Half ends, Bulgaria 1, Northern Ireland 0.
    • 0': Match ends, Bulgaria 1, Northern Ireland 0.

    Statistics

    https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/countries/500/nir.png&h=25&scale=crop&w=25&location=originNIR BULhttps://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/countries/500/bul.png&h=25&scale=crop&w=25&location=origin
    12 Fouls 19
    4 Yellow Cards 3
    0 Red Cards 0
    1 Offsides 2
    4 Corner Kicks 2
    2 Saves 3
    52.2 Possession 47.8
    8 SHOTS 9
    3 ON GOAL 3
    0.4 On Target % 0.3
    0 Penalty Goals 0
    0 Penalty Kicks Taken 0
    287 Accurate Passes 270
    375 Passes 346
    0.8 Pass Completion % 0.8
    6 Accurate Crosses 2
    21 Crosses 11
    0.3 Cross % 0.2
    43 Long Balls 44
    12 Accurate Long Balls 15
    0.3 Long Balls % 0.3
    1 Blocked Shots 2
    8 Effective Tackles 6
    12 Tackles 8
    0.7 Tackle % 0.8
    7 Interceptions 13
    13 Effective Clearances 33
    13 Clearances 33

    Game Information

    Competition: UEFA Nations League

    Venue: Hristo Botev Stadium, Plovdiv
    Location: Plovdiv, Bulgaria
    Attendance: 14,300

    Line-Ups

    BUL Bulgaria (4-2-3-1)

    No. Name
    1 Dimitar Mitov (GK)
    5 Alex Petkov
    3 Zhivko Atanasov
    13 Fabian Nürnberger Yellow Card
    16 Viktor Popov
    17 Martin Minchev
    4 Ilia Gruev
    7 Georgi Kostadinov
    9 Aleksandar Kolev
    8 Radoslav Kirilov
    11 Kiril Despodov
    Bulgaria Substitutes:
    Simeon Petrov, Stanislav Ivanov, Ertan Tombak, Zdravko Dimitrov, Valentin Antov, Georgi Rusev, Ivan Dyulgerov, Svetoslav Vutsov, Ahmed Yalmazov Ahmedov, Ivan Minchev, Vasil Panayotov, Georgi Minchev.

    NIR Northern Ireland (3-4-3)

    No. Name
    1 Bailey Peacock-Farrell (GK)
    17 Paddy McNair Yellow Card
    22 Ciaron Brown
    4 Danny Ballard
    6 George Saville
    19 Shea Charles Yellow Card
    3 Jamal Lewis
    5 Trai Hume Yellow Card
    10 Dion Charles
    14 Isaac Price
    2 Conor Bradley Yellow Card
    Northern Ireland Substitutes:
    Josh Magennis, Brad Lyons, Callum Marshall, Shayne Lavery, Ethan Galbraith, Alistair McCann, Luke Southwood, Eoin Toal, Joshua Clarke, Corry Evans, Ross McCausland, Paul Smyth.

    UEFA Nations League News

    Why Romania were awarded the win vs. Kosovo
    Why Romania were awarded the win vs. Kosovo

    Gab Marcotti explains why Romania were awarded a 3-0 win in the Nations League after the Kosovo team left the pitch.

    Marcotti: Güler to Arsenal would be another Ødegaard situation
    Marcotti: Güler to Arsenal would be another Ødegaard situation

    Gab Marcotti & Julien Laurens discuss how Arda Güler would fit into Arsenal's current squad.

    Rashford and Casemiro social media posts a dig at Ten Hag?
    Rashford and Casemiro social media posts a dig at Ten Hag?

    The ESPN FC crew discuss the recent social media posts by Marcus Rashford and Casemiro and whether or not it's a dig at former manager Erik ten Hag.

    UEFA award Romania 3-0 victory over Kosovo after walk-off
    UEFA award Romania 3-0 victory over Kosovo after walk-off

    Romania have been awarded a 3-0 victory over Kosovo after their Nations League match in Bucharest was abandoned, UEFA said on Wednesday.

    UEFA Nations League: Finals, playoffs, 2026 World Cup impact
    UEFA Nations League: Finals, playoffs, 2026 World Cup impact

    The new-look UEFA Nations League group stage is over, and there was much more at stake than you might think.