Rabotnichki defeated Vardar 3:1 in the 31st round which means that the Macedonian domestic league will have a new champion since Vardar now has no chance of defending their crown from last season.
First League – Round 31 (Videos)
A brace by Borche Manevski and an additional goal by Blagoja Todorovski propelled Rabotnichki to a 3:1 win over their in-city rival Vardar. Now, with just two rounds to go, only three teams are battling for the title in Rabotnichki, Turnovo and Metalurg. Rabotnichki was up by two goals in the first half and seemed in control of things, but Vardar pulled one back through Filip Petrov in the 70th minute to make it interesting. However, Rabotnichki put the game away in the 81st minute through captain Blagoja Todorovski to snatch all three points.
Match highlights:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=jECewhLr42c
Horizont Turnovo defeated Pelister 1:0 with the lone goal being scored by Sashko Pandev, the younger brother of Goran Pandev, drectly from a free kick in the second half. Prior to that, Pelister’s keeper Goran Pashovski saved a penalty, while defender Filip Milenkovski was sent off after receiving two yellow cards. Eventually, Horizont Turnovo managed to break down Pelister and hand the Bitola based club a tough loss as their hopes of qualifying for the Europa League are now slim.
Video of Pandev’s goal:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=bNMgNEP_ZD4
Shkendija jumped up to 5th place after they destroyed Renova 5:0. Stênio Júnior opened the scoring early in the first half and it was 1:0 during the halftime break, but Shkendija exploded for four goals in the second half, striker Mensur Kurtishi leading the way with a brace.
Metalurg remained in the race at the top by notching a minimal 0:1 road victory in the tricky trip to Shtip against Bregalnica. Striker Marko Simonovski scored the only goal to allow Metalurg to head home with all three points.
Makedonija Gjorche Petrov defeated Gostivar 2:1 in a match featuring two already relegated teams, while Gorno Lisiche defeated Napredok 4:1 to move two points behind 8th placed Renova. The 8th spot is crucial since it is the last position that escapes relegation this season.
Rabotnichki – Vardar 3:1 (2:0)
38′, 45′ Borche Manevski, 81′ Blagoja Todorovski – 70′ Filip Petrov
Horizont Turnovo – Pelister 1:0 (0:0)
71′ Sashko Pandev
Shkendija – Renova 5:0 (1:0)
3′ Stênio Júnior, 56′ Bojan Vručina, 67′, 70′ Mensur Kurtishi, 83′ Astrit Fazliu
Makedonija Gjorche Petrov – Gostivar 2:1 (1:1)
5′ Boban Janchevski, 77′ (pen) Ermedin Adem – 18′ Ljutfi Biljalji
Gorno Lisiche – Napredok 4:1 (2:0)
10′ Vladimir Tufegdžić, 17′ Aleksandar Stojanovski, 80′ Šaleta Kordić, 81′ Aleksandar Pandovski – 86′ Vladimir Mojsovski
Bregalnica – Metalurg 0:1 (0:1)
21′ Marko Simonovski