Šebo given fresh Slovakia chance

Vladimír Weiss has recalled Filip Šebo to the Slovakia squad as a replacement for the injured Róbert Vittek ahead of his team's qualifiers against Armenia and the Republic of Ireland on 8 and 12 October.

MKE Ankaragücü forward Vittek is expected to be out for at least six weeks after suffering knee ligament damage against Turkish Super League opponents Gençlerbirliği SK at the weekend. That has opened the door for Šebo to add to his eight international caps, the last of which he won in August 2008.

"To be honest, it's a big surprise for me," said the 26-year-old former Rangers FC and Valenciennes FC striker. "I didn't expect this. It was a shock when I got an SMS from Martin Škrtel saying I was in the squad. I had to call him back as I thought it was a joke."

Slovakia boast six points after their opening two games in Group B, having followed up their home success against the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia by triumphing 1-0 in Russia.

Slovakia squad
Goalkeepers: Ján Mucha (Everton), Dušan Perniš (Dundee United FC), Martin Dúbravka (MŠK Žilina).

Defenders: Peter Pekarík (VfL Wolfsburg), Martin Škrtel (Liverpool FC), Tomáš Hubočan (FC Zenit St. Petersburg), Kornel Saláta (ŠK Slovan Bratislava), Radoslav Zabavník (1. FSV Mainz 05), Mário Pečalka (MŠK Žilina).

Midfielders: Miroslav Karhan (1. FSV Mainz 05), Juraj Kucka (AC Sparta Praha), Zdeno Štrba (Skoda Xanthi FC), Kamil Kopúnek (FC Saturn Moskovskaya Oblast), Marek Hamšík (SSC Napoli), Marek Sapara (MKE Ankaragücü), Vladimír Weiss (Rangers FC), Miroslav Stoch (Fenerbahce SK).

Forwards: Stanislav Šesták (MKE Ankaragücü), Erik Jendrišek (FC Schalke 04), Filip Hološko (Beşiktaş JK), Tomáš Oravec (MŠK Žilina), Jakub Sylvestr (NK Dinamo Zagreb), Filip Šebo (ŠK Slovan Bratislava).