Slovakia surprised everyone in the qualifiers, gaining the top spot even after losing the second and the second-last match to Slovenia. For more info on the Slovakia National Football Team at the 2010 world cup, read on.

Football » 2010 FIFA World Cup Teams » Slovakia Team for 2010 World Cup

Slovakia Team for 2010 World Cup

The Slovak Football Association and the Slovakian National football team were founded in 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. Even though the Slovaks have not qualified for a World Cup before, they had provided key players for the Czechoslovakian team, including a majority of the players for the team that won the 1976 European Championships. The Slovaks do not have any big names among the players, yet their team-spirit and well-organized game strategy has them steadily climbing the ranks. The Slovakian national team qualified on top of the table for the FIFA World Cup 2010 even though they faced tough opposition from neighbors Slovenia.

Slovakia surprised everyone in the qualifiers, gaining the top spot even after losing the second and the second-last match to Slovenia. Apart from that Slovakia managed a wins against Northern Ireland, San Marino, Czech Republic and Poland and had to make-do with a draw only in one match against the Czech Republic. The wins fetched them two points above Slovenia and earned them the top spot in the Group.

Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel is the pillar in the defensive line. Midfielder Marek Hamsik and striker Stanislav Sestak are both front-runners in scoring goals for the national side. In the qualifying round Sestak was the top scorer for Slovakia with six goals and he looks like he intends to continue well into the World Cup finals in similar fashion.

Vladamir Weiss took over the coaching reigns from Jan Kocian in June 2008 after he guided Artmedia to the Slovakian league title. He has coached Saturn Moscow Oblast in Russia before he took over the coaching responsibility at Artmedia and finally the National team. His strong personality and competitive spirit coupled with the Slovakian team-spirit got the Slovakian team the top spot in the group and a ticket to the 2010 FIFA World finals tournament, the very first for Slovakia as an independent nation.

This World Cup, the Slovaks will be a time to watch out for, with their persistence and team-work they just might be responsible for toppling a big name, considering the big upsets they caused in the qualifiers.

Slovakian Football Team for FIFA World Cup 2010

The Pre-World Cup list of players for Slovakia is given below.

Player	Position
Ján Mucha	Goalkeeper
Dušan Kuciak	Goalkeeper
¼uboš Kamenár	Goalkeeper
Dušan Perniš	Goalkeeper
Radoslav Zabavník	Defender
Marek Èech	Left Back, Left Winger
Martin Petráš	Defender
Martin Škrtel	Centre back
Ján Ïurica	Centre back
Peter Pekarík	Right back
Tomáš Huboèan	Centre back
¼ubomír Michalík	Centre back
Kornel Saláta	Centre back / Defensive midfielder
Mário Peèalka	Defensive midfielder / Centre back
Miroslav Karhan	Defensive midfielder
Marek Hamšík	Attacking Midfielder / Central Midfielder
Marek Sapara	Midfielder
Ján Kozák	Attacking Midfielder
Zdeno Štrba	Defensive midfielder
Dušan Švento	Left winger
Miroslav Stoch	Attacking midfielder / Winger
Kamil Kopúnek	Defensive midfielder
Vladimír Weiss	Winger
Juraj Kucka	Central midfielder
Róbert Vittek	Striker
Filip Hološko	Striker, Right winger
Stanislav Šesták	Striker / Right Winger
Martin Jakubko	Forward
Erik Jendrišek	Striker

Slovakia matches schedule

Date - Time	Venue				Results
15-June 13:30	Rustenburg	New Zealand	vs	Slovakia	Draw 1-1
20-June 13:30	Mangaung / Bloemfontein	Slovakia	vs	Paraguay	Paraguay won by 2-0
24-June 16:00	Johannesburg - JEP	Slovakia	vs	Italy	Slovakia won by 3-2
28-June 16:00	Durban	Netherlands	vs	Slovakia	Netherlands won by 2-1

Report typo or correction