Stephen Bradley’s Shamrock Rovers had a night to forget in Europe after losing 2-0 to Celje at Tallaght Stadium in the Europa Conference League.
Celje dominated the ball early and settled into the game quickly, forcing Ed McGinty into action just minutes into the encounter.
Rovers did get their first chance on the break, when Rory Gaffney stung the goalkeeper’s hands but Rovers soon thought they had fallen behind.
Celje striker Franko Kovacevic calmly slotted the ball beyond McGinty from a cross but there was cause for a VAR check after both a potential offside and foul in the build-up.
After a near five minute check, the strike was disallowed for a foul on Rovers defender Dan Cleary.
Celje continued to boast possession but looked vulnerable to the counter-attack although Rovers could not seize the intiative.
Instead, Kovacevic got his goal after showing great feet to beat Cory O’Sullivan and Pico Lopes, before drilling a shot that Ed McGinty had no chance of stopping.
Class from Kovacevic to give Celje the lead over Shamrock Rovers.pic.twitter.com/rIn5OMmtz3
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) October 23, 2025
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The striker added his second when Lukasz Bejger sent the ball goalwards and he bundled it across the line with his chest.
Rovers probed in the second-half but the final ball just wasn’t there for the LOI champs-in-waiting.
Tension between Stephen Bradley and Albert Riera continues
Celje are an opponent the League of Ireland club know well, having faced them in the Europa League qualifiers in 2024. Rovers would win that tie 3-2, overturning a 1-0 deficit from the first leg to get the job done in Tallaght after extra-time.
After that fixture, Bradley would accuse Celje manager, former Liverpool winger, Albert Riera of ‘complete arrogance’ for his suggestions that the Slovenian team were far superior to their opponents ahead of the second leg.
This year Riera struck back, rejecting suggestions that he was an ‘arrogant’ figure, going on to mockingly suggest that the Irishman may need to look up the definition of an alternative word
The line between arrogance and confidence is very thin. If you ask me, I would say that I am maybe too confident…but no arrogance,” he explained.
He made a mistake saying that because he doesn’t know me. If you don’t know me, you cannot talk about me.
Maybe he needs to read in the dictionary what confidence means. And then he will understand that last season, maybe I was not arrogant. I was confident in my team.
Riera exacted his revenge but there were no pleasantries exchanged between the two coaches following the full-time whistle.
Footage has emerged of Riera appearing to approach Bradley for a handshake but it was not reciprocated by the decorated Rovers coach.
Shameful stuff from Shamrock to be beaten at home like that. Embarrassing for the country.
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) October 23, 2025
The rift then became amplified in the post-match press conference. First Riera had a go at Bradley for not managing outside of Ireland.
“Personally, I will not say any word because I don’t know him and I don’t want to know him. He’s someone that is many, many years here, I think nine years already here. Even winning here in this country and you stay in this country still. You’re not coming anyone from abroad. I think this means some things.
“We didn’t even have one coffee. And we will not have to, anyway, we will not give him the chance to have a coffee with me because after one year, he still didn’t apologise. And this, I will not accept.”
Bradley replied by saying Riera showed a ‘lack of class’ with his statement.
“It’s easy to be disrespectful when you’ve won. It’s easy to do that. I think that shows the lack of class that the man has. I said that last year. I think it’s quite easy to do that when you’ve won the game and come in and speak like that. I think that sums up him as a person. The lack of class and the lack of understanding of what he’s talking about really sums him up.”
Bradley’s attentions now turn to Sunday. He’ll run the Dublin marathon in the morning and be in Derry for the afternoon where he’ll be hoping Rovers seal the League of Ireland title.
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