Bulgaria edges Finland 2-1 soccer friendly

SOFIA, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Bulgaria defeated Finland 2-1 in a hard-fought international friendly on Tuesday evening.

The visitors dominated the first half and took the lead in the 22nd minute when 37-year-old veteran Jari Litmanen netted a penalty under the fading light at the Vasil Levski national stadium.

Zdravko Lazarov equalized three minutes after the break for the home side, but fans had to wait until the 90th minute to see 19-year-old Stanislav Genchev score on his debut, only 25 minutes after coming off the bench.

Bulgarian coach Plamen Markov will now be looking for another opponent for the round of friendlies to be played on August 20, so that the team can be well-prepared for the World Cup qualifying campaign, which kicks off on September 6.