Translated material
Virgin soil upturned
The Kazakhstan team won its first victory in Europe
Kazakhs got a chance to feel like full-fledged Europeans. Having joined the European Football Union almost five years ago, the Kazakhstan national team, which previously played in the Asian zone, won its first victory in official UEFA tournaments. The Serbian team that lost to it went down in the history of Kazakh football.Group "A". Belgium, defeated by the Portuguese, practically lost its chance to take one of the two first places. They weren’t rated too highly before, but the favorites’ misfires gave the Belgians a small chance, which they didn’t take advantage of. However, it took the European vice-champions almost an hour to seal the visitors' goal after possessing the ball for 70% of the playing time. But as soon as Nuno Gomes scored the first goal, things started to move, and his partners soon brought the score to a big one, registering a third consecutive victory for the Portuguese national team after a bad start. Cristiano Ronaldo, who may soon become the most expensive player in the world, scored twice. According to Spanish media, Real Madrid is ready to offer Manchester United 80 million euros for the Portuguese, and Barcelona 75 million.
The loudest sensation of the game day took place in the same group - the Kazakhstan team beat the Serbs - 2:1. Successfully fighting back and occasionally making forays into the opposing half of the field, the Kazakhs managed to score two goals and celebrated their first victory. “They deserved it,” head coach of the Serbian team Javier Clemente paid tribute to his opponent. - The hosts completely shut out our midfield from the game. We just had to pass the balls on horseback to Zigic and Pantelic. Yes, we scored one goal this way, but overall this tactic was not successful.”
This misfire by the Serbs makes the fight to get out of the group unpredictable. Much may become clearer on Wednesday after the Serbia-Portugal match.
Group "B". Ukraine has so far managed to keep up with the favorites. The Ukrainians' game in the Faroe Islands could have been postponed due to unfavorable weather conditions - the field was covered with snow shortly before the match. But the French opposed changing the calendar and postponing the meeting to August, and Blokhin’s team had to play on time. Despite the absence of Shevchenko and Rebrov in the lineup, the Ukrainians dealt with the opponent without any problems, while the Moscow Spartak midfielder Kalinichenko did not convert several chances, and the Zenit player Tymoshchuk hit the post.
Group leaders Scotland and France faced serious difficulties. The Scots managed to score the winning goal only in the 89th minute, and the French needed more than an hour to crack the Lithuanian team's defense. “The Lithuanians gave us a real fight, but in a difficult moment we were able to show character,” Raymond Domenech did not hide his relief after Anelka scored his team’s only goal. - I like to see Anelka as he was on the field today. This is a real candidate for a place in the main team.”
Group "C". The Norwegians seriously complicated their lives by losing at home to the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. But the Greek team suffered an even more crushing fiasco at home. The reigning European champions opened the scoring, and this was the first goal conceded for the Turkish national team in this qualifying round. But then the vaunted defense of Otto Rehhagel’s team crumbled, and the Turks, having inflicted a rout on the Greeks, took the lead in the standings. The Greek national team will be able to return to first place on Wednesday, playing against Malta. On the same day, the Norwegians, in a head-to-head meeting with the Turkish team, will try to preserve their last chances to interfere in the distribution of tickets from this group.
Group "D". Perhaps the most interesting match of the day was played in Prague, where the Czech team lost to the bronze medalists of the last World Championship, the German team. From the very beginning, the guests made it clear that they were not going to sit on the defensive, and Kevin Kuranyi's goal, who scored from a corner at the end of the first half, was the best confirmation of this. The second goal was also scored by the forward, who has Hungarian, Norwegian, Gypsy and Panamanian blood, and he received his football education in Rio de Janeiro. Kuranyi, whom Barcelona seemed to have their eye on, scored again with his head during a sharp counterattack, and Baros' slightly curious goal could not change anything in this match.
“It’s worth thanking Kevin, he was super motivated and proved that he can cause problems for any defense,” German national team head coach Joachim Löw did not skimp on his praise. -- Kuranyi's second goal was very important as the Czech Republic began to build momentum. But I liked the game and the defense of our team. We didn’t let the Czechs create practically anything dangerous.”
Group "F". The Spanish national team almost suffered another disaster, which could have put an end to its ambitions. The first half of the game against the Danes was a success for the Spaniards, and after the veteran Morientes opened the scoring, Villa made his team's advantage quite significant. However, immediately after the break, the Danes managed to get one goal back and caused a lot of unpleasant moments for the hosts' head coach Luis Aragones, who is already on the verge of retirement. “This goal, of course, influenced us. And as a result, the game became more intense,” admitted Luis Aragones. - I'm glad that we managed to win. But we were unable to attack with our usual ease; our football was not of the best quality. With the score 2:0, we could have finished the game with counterattacks. But we lost the ball too often in simple situations, conceded goals and began to get nervous. However, we tend to slow down after the break.”
In two days, the Spaniards will play Iceland, and then Aragones' team will have a chance to get closer to group leaders Sweden and Northern Ireland, who are playing each other.
Group "G". The Belarusians almost missed an excellent opportunity to get closer to the leaders. Everything went well for Yuri Puntush’s team in the match against Luxembourg. Having taken the lead in the first half, the visitors, after missing several chances, nevertheless increased their advantage. However, the Luxembourgers' return goal almost spoiled everything - at the end of the game the hosts had a couple more chances to get a historic draw for themselves, but everything worked out for the Belarusians.
Yuri Puntush should also be pleased with other results. The favorites' draws give his team, albeit a small, but very real chance to compete for second place in the group.
Qualifying round of the European Championship 2008. Group "A". Kazakhstan - Serbia - 2:1 (Ashirbekov 47, Zhumaskaliev 61 - Zigic 68) , Poland - Azerbaijan - 5:0 (Bonk 3, Dudka 6, Lobodzinski 34, Krzynowek 58, Kazmierczak 84) , Portugal - Belgium -- 4:0 (Nuno Gomes 53, Cristiano Ronaldo 55, 75, Quaresma 69) . Group "B". Faroe Islands - Ukraine - 0:2 (Yezersky 20, Gusev 57) , Scotland - Georgia - 2:1 (Boyd 11, Beattie 89 - Sh. Arveladze 41) , Lithuania - France - 0:1 ( Anelka 73 ). Group "C". Moldova - Malta - 1:1 (A. Epureanu 85 - Malja 73) , Norway - Bosnia and Herzegovina - 1:2 (Kariu 50 - Misimovic 18, Damjanovic 33) , Greece - Turkey - 1 :4 (Kyriakos 5, -- Tuncay 27, Yunal 55, Tumer 70, Gekdeniz 81) . Group "D". Ireland - Wales - 1:0 (Iland 39) , Cyprus - Slovakia - 1:3 (Aloneftis 45 - Wittek 54, Skrtel 67, Jakubko 77) , Czech Republic - Germany - 1:2 (Baros 77 -- Kuranyi 42, Kuranyi 62) . Group "E". Estonia - Russia - 0:2 (Kerzhakov 66, Kerzhakov 78) , Israel - England - 0:0, Croatia - Macedonia - 2:1 (Srna 58, Da Silva 88 - Sedloski 38) . Group "F". Liechtenstein - Northern Ireland - 1:4 (F. Bugmaier 90 - Healy 52, 75, 83, McCann 90) , Spain - Denmark - 2:1 (Morientes 34, Villa 45 - Gravgaard 49) . Group "G". Luxembourg - Belarus - 1:2 (Sagramola 68 - Kalachev 25, Kutuzov 54) , Albania - Slovenia - 0:0, Holland - Romania - 0:0.
Group "A"
| 1. Poland | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11--5 | 13 |
| 2. Finland | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7--2 | 11 |
| 3. Portugal | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 12--3 | 10 |
| 4. Serbia | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7--3 | 10 |
| 5. Belgium | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4--6 | 7 |
| 6. Kazakhstan | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3--8 | 5 |
| 7. Armenia | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0--5 | 1 |
| 8. Azerbaijan | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1--13 | 1 |
Group "B"
| 1. France | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 12--2 | 12 |
| 2. Scotland | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 11--4 | 12 |
| 3. Ukraine | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7--4 | 9 |
| 4. Italy | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7--5 | 7 |
| 5. Lithuania | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3--4 | 4 |
| 6. Georgia | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 10--11 | 3 |
| 7. Faroe Islands | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0--20 | 0 |
Group "C"
| 1. Türkiye | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 12--1 | 12 |
| 2. Greece | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7--4 | 9 |
| 3. Bosnia and Herzegovina | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10--12 | 7 |
| 4. Norway | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7--4 | 6 |
| 5. Malta | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5--9 | 4 |
| 6. Hungary | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5--8 | 3 |
| 7. Moldova | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3--11 | 2 |
Group "D"
| 1. Germany | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 21--3 | 13 |
| 2. Czech Republic | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 14--4 | 10 |
| 3. Ireland | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11--8 | 10 |
| 4. Slovakia | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 15--10 | 9 |
| 5. Cyprus | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 9--15 | 4 |
| 6. Wales | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5--9 | 3 |
| 7. San Marino | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1--27 | 0 |
Group "E"
| 1. Croatia | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 15--4 | 13 |
| 2. Russia | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7--1 | 11 |
| 3. England | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6--2 | 8 |
| 4. Israel | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9--6 | 8 |
| 5. Macedonia | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5--5 | 7 |
| 6. Estonia | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0--6 | 0 |
| 7. Andorra | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1--19 | 0 |
Group "F"
| 1. Sweden | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8--2 | 12 |
| 2. North Ireland | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8--6 | 10 |
| 3. Denmark | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7--2 | 7 |
| 4. Spain | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8--6 | 6 |
| 5. Latvia | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4--2 | 3 |
| 6. Iceland | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4--8 | 3 |
| 7. Liechtenstein | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2--15 | 0 |
Group "G"
| 1. Netherlands | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7--2 | 11 |
| 2. Bulgaria | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7--3 | 8 |
| 3. Romania | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7--3 | 8 |
| 4. Belarus | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9--11 | 7 |
| 5. Slovenia | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4--7 | 4 |
| 6. Albania | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3--6 | 2 |
| 7. Luxembourg | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1--6 | 0 |