Football
World Cup Qualification: a giant embarrassment for the Swedes, Stanciu and Nita cry
On Thursday, the first matches of the European part of the World Cup qualification were played and there were a few surprises. The Romanians and the Portuguese lost points, and the Swedes embarrassed themselves in Georgia.
On Thursday, the first matches of the European part of the World Cup qualification were played and there were a few surprises. The Romanians and the Portuguese lost points, and the Swedes embarrassed themselves in Georgia.
Group A
In Group A, the big favourite Portugal faltered. Cristiano Ronaldo and co. only drew with Ireland at home. As expected, Luxembourg won 3-1 against Azerbaijan.
In table terms, the loss of two points means nothing to the Portuguese. If they do not lose to Serbia in the last round of qualification, they will qualify directly, otherwise the Balkan selection will avoid the barrier.
Group B
The Swedish team suffered a defeat in Georgia. They lost 0:2 on the soil of the outsider and even the Spanish victory over the Greeks 1:0 did not play into their hands. Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s comeback did not go as expected.
The Swedes lost three points and the first place in Group A. They must win in Spain if they want to advance without a barrier. If they fail to do so, it will be the semi-finalist of this year’s Euros who will take direct promotion.
In the other groups, there were no changes in the top places. Thanks to a 6:0 win, Russia stayed at the top of the “Slovak group”, while the second-placed Croats are two points behind. The Slovaks and Slovenians are now out of the playoffs.
Nicolae Stanciu and Florin Nita did not help Romania to win, they only drew 0:0 with Iceland. To their misfortune, Macedonia beat Armenia 5: 0 and leapfrogged the Romanians. In the last round, it will be all to play for.
Source: FIFA
