They might be divided by politics and religion, creating century-long chaos and hatred. However, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland have many things in common, especially regarding their passion for football.Moreover, Thursday night clashes of their respective sides in the UEFA Europa Conference League demonstrated another rather bizarre similarity – they are predestined to score crazy, utterly awkward goals.Glentoran (N. Ireland) and St. Patrick’s (Rep. of Ireland) were both eliminated in the early phase of qualification for Europe’s third-best competition, but not before scoring it like no one before.A crazy night all across Europe. Have you seen the Penalty shootout drama involved Glentoran? The Glens went out 14-13 on pens to a Maltese side but not before they had scored this hilarious effort. pic.twitter.com/PSnvDn6fTG— Between the Stripes (@betweenstripes) July 20, 2023 Glentoran have said their farewell to the Conference League after a super-exciting penalty shootout, losing it at home to Maltese side Gzira United 14-13. But the penalty Luke McCullough scored in the shootout will definitely go down in history for its unique charm. Gzira’s keeper denied his effort at first, but as the keeper started to celebrate, the ball’s curve sent it back and over the line for the ecstatic celebration of McCullough himself and the entire home crowd.##NAJAVA_MECA_7383841##Sadly enough for the hosts, not even that moment could save them from going down in the end.Abd a few hundred miles away, the Republic of Ireland’s proud St. Patrick’s were doing their best to bounce back after losing the first leg to Dudelange 2-1. Unfortunately for them, they conceded three in the rematch, so the two they scored were made irrelevant. Yes, irrelevant, but very worth writing about…🇮🇪 Surrealista el gol que ha anotado el St. Patrick’s para igualar el encuentro ante el Diddeleng.pic.twitter.com/5l4yPjYxJz— Camino al fútbol europeo (@CaminoUEFA) July 20, 2023 The equalizer was out of this world. It was an own goal that not even words could describe. See it for yourself and enjoy every second of it…
