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On Saturday, the 22nd round of qualifiers for the 2008 European Championship was played, which did not lack goals and unexpected results. The teams of the British Isles had mixed fortunes - England did not break through the fierce Macedonian defense at home and lost points at home, Wales and Ireland suffered crushing defeats, but Scotland achieved a historic victory against the French, while Northern Ireland surprised by not giving up to Denmark. Among the favorites, Portugal, Czech Republic, Croatia, Romania, and Slovenia convincingly won, Serbia, Poland, Greece, Turkey, and Lithuania celebrated minimal victories, Russia and the Netherlands settled for draws, Latvia beat Iceland convincingly, and the defending world champion Italy repeated the scenario of the World Cup quarterfinals and defeated Ukraine.
In Group A, the Polish team won an important victory as they defeated the debutants from Kazakhstan 1-0 away. A precise shot in the 52nd minute from Ebi Smolarek, the central defender of the "Borussia" club, awarded the victory to Leo Beenhakker's team.
In another match, Serbia defeated the strong Belgian team by a minimal result of 1-0. Forward Nikola Zigic scored in the 55th minute of the match.
Portugal defeated Azerbaijan 3-0 with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring in the 25th minute, Ricardo Carvalho in the 31st minute, and another goal by Cristiano Ronaldo in the 63rd minute to complete the rout.
Armenia and Finland's match ended in a goalless draw.
In Group B, the Lithuanian national team snatched a victory in the final minutes of the match against the Faroe Islands away in Torshavn, while France and Scotland met in a match full of intrigue. "Les Bleus" dominated the first 45 minutes of the game, when Scotland's goalkeeper Craig Gordon had to save his team after a long-range shot from Florent Malouda. Just before the end of the first half, Gary Caldwell had to work as well after a shot from Gregory Coupet. After a few moments, France's attacking leader Thierry Henry hit the crossbar.
In the second half, the home team attacked more, which cost the guests a goal. In the 67th minute, following a corner from Paul Hartley, G. Caldwell scored while collapsing from just a few meters out. With three minutes left to play, T. Henry had a chance, but his header was easily caught by C. Gordon. This victory brought Scotland three more points and made them the lone leaders of the "group of death."
In a rematch of the World Cup quarterfinals, the World Champion Italy and Ukraine clashed at the Rome Olympic Stadium. Without their clear leader Andriy Shevchenko, the Ukrainians managed to resist the champions until the 70th minute when forward Luca Toni was illegally stopped in the penalty area. Massimo Oddo stepped up to take the penalty and scored with no chance for Oleksandr Shovkovsky. Eight minutes later, the decisive goal of the match was scored after a pass from Antonio Di Natale to the far post, sent into the net by Luca Toni.
