Sport transcended politics as years of surrounding
the Kosovo national team were finally quelled with just hours until the
kick-off of its World Cup qualifying campaign.
An ordinary draw with Finland belies a set of extraordinary circumstances.
For
while it is one thing to be kept on your toes before a football match,
it is quite another to not know your international eligibility until the
day of your nation's first ever competitive fixture.
Six
players still didn't know if FIFA would permit them to switch
allegiances at 16:00 local time Monday; how fitting then that it was one
of those desperate few, Valon Berisha, who scored the crucial goal.
Having
been forced to wait until the eleventh hour, the former Norway
international stepped up after 60 minutes to enter the history books,
prompting wild celebrations in Turku & congratulations from around
the world.
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