Bulgaria won 1:0 over the hosts in the final match of the “FIFA Series 2026” tournament, which is taking place in Indonesia, and lifted the champion's cup.
Marin Petkov scored the goal from the penalty spot for the “Lions“, deciding the match, and the penalty kick was given due to a breakthrough and knockdown of Zdravko Dimitrov. Referee Nazmi bin Nasaruddin from Malaysia reviewed the situation with video assistance (VAR), then pointed to the white spot.
So far, Bulgaria has defeated the Solomon Islands 10:2, and Indonesia has dealt with Saint Kitts and Nevis 4:2. Earlier today, in the match for 3rd place, Saint Kitts and Nevis won Solomon Islands 4:2.
The hosts started aggressively in both halves and had possession of the ball 56% against 44 for the Bulgarians. Twice the ball landed on the top bar of goalkeeper Mitov, while Vladimir Nikolov missed in the 83rd minute to end the dispute.
The East Asians had taken three corner kicks by the 16th minute, with their wings working, looking for a breakthrough in the Bulgarian defense. The picture did not change until the 28th minute, when the Bulgarians created their first two situations, with Kristian Stoyanov entering from the left in the second, but from a small angle only winning a corner.
In the 33rd minute, after a pass from Filip Krastev's own half to Zdravko Dimitrov, the winger of the Turkish Amedspor rushed into the penalty area and was cut down by Kevin Dix. The referee from Malaysia first let the game continue, but was called by the referees for a video review (VAR). After reviewing the monitor, the referee awarded a penalty, and Marin Petkov converted it into a goal. This is the sixth goal for the winger for the national team.
The second half started like the first - with pressure from the home team. But in the 58th minute, the Bulgarians could have scored a second goal. After taking a corner kick, goalkeeper Audero dropped the ball, which fell to Martin Minchev. The striker of the Polish Krakow team shot, but Rizky Rido was standing on the goal line and cleared the ball.
In the 73rd minute, the home team could have punished a mistake by the Bulgarian defenders and goalkeeper Mitov, who came out a little hastily. The home team striker Ole Romeni broke away, got to the ball first and tried to score a parabolic shot. However, the ball landed on the top crossbar and went out. Four minutes later, Velkovski prevented a sure goal after he managed to stretch through three opponents to the back post and clear into a corner kick.
Bulgaria conceded a second goal in the 81st minute after Vladimir Nikolov failed to overcome goalkeeper Audero, against whom he was left alone. Goalkeeper Mitov saw the striker left alone and found him with a long pass from his own penalty area. Nikolov got free perfectly, but his finish was not precise.
In the 87th minute, the ball again landed on the top post after Mitov cleared a shot by Rizki Rido on a subsequent corner kick. Towards the end of the match, there was a great chance for Zdravko Dimitrov from a foul, which he earned himself, but the ball went over Audero's crossbar.
Thus, the Bulgarians continued the series of victories to three, which began in November with 2:1 over Georgia in the last World Cup qualifier and continued with the two successes at the tournament in Indonesia.