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The Lithuanian national team has lost as many as 19 positions in the latest FIFA ranking - the most in history for one month - and currently occupies only the 75th place. The last time Lithuanians dropped to a lower position was four years ago - in October 2007, when they were in the 90th place.
This national team's failure was caused by a draw at home with modest Liechtenstein, which rose to 118th place, and a loss to Scotland, burying hopes of qualifying for the European Championship final stage. Compared to August, Lithuania lost as many as 93 ranking points.
However, our footballers were lucky as the draw for the 2014 World Cup qualifying tournament was held at the end of July. The pots for this draw were formed based on the FIFA ranking, and a much higher position at that time ensured that the team made it to the fourth pot, which would now be closed.
After a long break, our country was surpassed by neighbors Estonia (58th place) and Latvia (74th).
Due to poor results, and now a drop in ranking too, national team coach Raimondas Žutautas has faced a lot of criticism. The decision about his future will be made by the Lithuanian Football Federation after the last qualifying match in Kaunas against the Czech Republic in October.
Spain has returned to the top of the rankings, surpassing temporarily the Netherlands team that surged forward at the end of the summer. Germany is in third place, while Uruguay has moved up to fourth. Portugal has climbed three spots to fifth place, with Italy, Brazil, England, Croatia, and Argentina rounding up the top ten.
Lithuania's future rival in the World Cup qualifying tournament, Greece, is in 11th place, Bosnia in 22nd (rising 17 places), Slovakia in 39th (losing 13), Latvia in 74th (rising 10), and as mentioned earlier, Liechtenstein in 118th.
FIFA ranking for September 2011: (place, team, points, change in position from August)
1. Spain 1605 (+1)
2. Netherlands 1571 (-1)
3. Germany 1290 (0)
4. Uruguay 1184 (+1)
5. Portugal 1158 (+3)
6. Italy 1142 (+1)
7. Brazil 1132 (-1)
8. England 1089 (-4)
9. Croatia 1057 (+1)
10. Argentina 1024 (-1)
11. Greece 1000 (+3)
12. France 956 (+3)
13. Russia 954 (0)
14. Chile 932 (-3)
15. Japan 924 (0)
16. Ivory Coast 910 (-1)
17. Denmark 893 (+4)
18. Switzerland 886 (+12)
19. Australia 882 (+3)
20. Mexico 866 (0)
...
22. Bosnia and Herzegovina 839 (+17)
...
39. Slovakia 662 (-13)
40. Czech Republic 656 (+2)
...
52. Scotland 572 (+3)
...
74. Latvia 460 (+10)
75. Lithuania 459 (-19)
...
118. Liechtenstein 270 (+1)
