© EuroFootball.com
In the 2008 European Championship qualifiers on Wednesday, matches took place in three groups - in Group A, Finland came forward after winning their third victory, closely followed by Poland, who took three points from Belgium. In Group D, Cyprus sensationally held off against Germany, while Ireland achieved their first win. Meanwhile, in Group E, Croatia leads after winning a thriller in Israel and also defeating Russia as visitors.
Finland, coached by Anglo Roy Hodgson, who had previously defeated Poland and played Portugal to a draw, faced Armenia at home. Despite goalkeeper Mika Nurmela scoring a header into the hosts' goal in the 10th minute after a pass from Jonathan Johansson, the Finns needed great goalkeeping from Jussi Jaaskelainen to maintain their lead in the second half.
With 11 points, Finland rose to first place, with Poland in second place after narrowly defeating Belgium away. The visitors took the initiative in the match in Brussels and scored in the 19th minute when defender Daniel van Buyten made an error and Radoslaw Matusiak sent the ball into the goal.
Throughout the match, Belgium struggled to create dangerous attacks, while Poland's attacks were sharper. In the first half, Eusebius Smolarek was very close to scoring twice, but initially, he missed just next to the post, and later, he headed the ball just inches from the goal. The hosts had the best opportunity to avoid failure at the end of the match, but Emile Mpenza was prevented from scoring by goalkeeper Arturas Borucas.
Portugal continued their dominance with a crushing win over Kazakhstan on their home ground, with Simao scoring twice and Cristiano Ronaldo adding one more. The day's result was settled in Cyprus, where the hosts managed to hold the World Cup bronze medalist, Germany, to a draw.
Despite Michael Ballack scoring in the 15th minute to give Germany the lead, Cyprus equalized before half-time through a fine goal from Giannakis Okkas. The Cypriot captain also scored a second goal in the second half, but it was disallowed for offside, and a dangerous German attack was stopped by a defender clearing the ball from the goal line. The visitors could have snatched a late victory, but Bastian Schweinsteiger missed the target, and Cyprus earned a draw.
