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Slovakia keeps World Cup hopes alive as Scotland's wait continues

REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa

Slovakia is a step closer to a second World Cup berth courtesy of Sunday's 3-0 victory over Malta.

Three teams entered Group F's finale with a chance at a second-place play-off spot behind group winner England, and for a while, it was Scotland's to lose after Celtic star Leigh Griffiths gave the Tartan Army a 1-0 lead at Slovenia.

All the while, Slovakia faced little opposition at home to minnow Malta, and by the 69th minute, it was 3-0 to the host. Fans at the Stadion Antona Malatinskeho in Trnava had one eye on the pitch, the other on their phones as they pined for a goal from Slovenia against the Scots.

The Slovaks got that and more, as Slovenian half-time substitute Ramon Bezjak scored twice in a 20-minute window to quiet the spirited Scottish fans in attendance and propel Slovakia to second place in the group.

Football is at the same time both cruel and considerate, and as Slovakia fans began to celebrate six hours up the road in Trnava, Robert Snodgrass gave Scotland hope with an 88th-minute goal against the run of play.

It wasn't to be for Scotland, and with the 2-2 draw, Gordon Strachan's lot finish third on goal differential behind Slovakia, who awaits the remainder of UEFA qualifiers to determine if its nabbed a play-off spot.

Here's a look at the play-off table, with eight of the nine second-place teams from each group booking a berth in the supplementary round of two-legged fixtures:

Pos. Team Points GD +/-
1 Portugal (A) 18 +18
2 Denmark (X) 14 +7
3 Italy (X) 14 +3
4 Sweden 13 +10
5 Northern Ireland (X) 13 +5
6 Greece 13 +4
7 Slovakia 12 +5
8 Wales 11 +2
9 Croatia 11 +2

(A - denotes a certain top-two Group B finish for Portugal, X - denotes a play-off spot)

Northern Ireland, Wales, Italy, Croatia, Sweden, and Greece still have one match remaining each.

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