New faces dominate Slovakian squad

Slovakia coach Ján Kocian has named ten new faces in a 17-man squad to face the United Arab Emirates in a friendly on Saturday. The UEFA EURO 2008™ hopefuls' last match of the year, the fixture in Abu Dhabi will be only Kocian's second in charge following his appointment last month, his first having ended in a 3-1 home victory against Bulgaria.

Kocian motivated
Fourteen of Kocian's squad play their club football in Slovakia, compared to just four in his first selection, whilst there are three who ply their trade in the Czech Republic. "We are not going there for a holiday, I want to win every match," said Kocian, who is pleased at the official status the match has been given by FIFA. "I hope it will be an added motivation for the new players," said the Slovakian coach.

Slovakia squad
Goalkeepers: Matúš Kozáčik (SK Slavia Praha), Dušan Kuciak (MŠK Žilina).

Defenders: Peter Pekárik, (MŠK Žilina), Lubomír Michalík (FK Senec), Michal Jonáš (ZTS Dubnica), Pavol Farkaš (FC Nitra), Maroš Klimpl (FC Baník Ostrava).

Midfielders: Kamil Kopúnek (FC Spartak Trnava), Igor Žofčák (MFK Ružomberok), Mário Bicák (MFK Košice), Pavol Sedlák (ŠK Slovan Bratislava), Pavol Majerník (MFK Košice), Tomáš Hubočan (MŠK Žilina).

Forwards: Milan Ivana (1. FC Slovácko), Stanislav Šesták (MŠK Žilina), Adam Nemec (MŠK Žilina), Michal Filo (ZTS Dubnica).