Bergamo handed Italy-Turkey friendly

Italy will use the November 15 friendly against Turkey to honour the memory of former Azzurri great Giacinto Facchetti.

The legendary Inter stopper, who won 94 caps for his country, sadly died last month after losing his battle against illness.

As a mark of respect to the former Inter President, the Italian Football Federation have opted to hold the game in Bergamo – the region where Facchetti hailed from.

“We want to remember the champion and the man,” said FIGC vice-commissioner Gigi Riva. “He was an example for everyone and in a period of such difficulty for the Italian game, his style and interpretation of sport must be taught to youngsters.”

Group B - Match 4: Georgia v Italy

11 October 2006: Ukraine 1-3 Italy (Tbilisi)
Italy capped a very good week Euro 2008 qualifying by beating ten-man Georgia 3-1 in Tbilisi.

After Georgi Shashiashvili cancelled out Daniele De Rossi's opener for the Azzurri, Roberto Donadoni's team took control with the sending-off on the hour of Georgia midfielder Jaba Kankava, and Mauro Camoranesi restored the lead before Simone Perrotta sealed the points.

Italy had taken only one point from their first two games, but followed up their weekend defeat of Ukraine with a second successive victory. With Donadoni bringing Alessandro Nesta, Perrotta, Camoranesi and Antonio Di Natale into the side tonight, they came out with all guns blazing, although that attacking intent was stymied by a Georgia offside trap which caught the visitors five times early on.

The World champions eventually broke through on 18 minutes, De Rossi scoring with a long-range strike that bounced awkwardly in front of Georgia keeper Georgi Lomaia. When the Azzurri sat on their advantage, Klaus Toppmoller's team came forward and with their first meaningful foray, equalised. A ball was half-cleared as far as Shashiashvili who returned it with interest past Gianluigi Buffon.

In reply, Luca Toni blazed wide at the far post, before squandering a golden chance moments later after Gianluca Zambrotta found him unmarked inside the area, failing even to test Lomaia. Nonetheless, Donadoni and company could have been trailing at half-time, with Zurab Khizanishvili rattling the far post having already beaten Buffon.

Although Italy began the second half brightly, Georgia missed another opportunity when Kankava prompted a routine stop from Buffon. A minute later, the same player received his marching orders, collecting a second caution for a challenge on Andrea Pirlo. It was a bitter blow for the hosts and Italy took full advantage.

They were in front on 63 minutes through Camoranesi's header at the far post from Di Natale's cross. The home side had little time to react before it was 3-1, Perrotta profiting from a poor clearance by the Georgia defence to rifle past Lomaia. Late on, De Rossi could have scored again but his free-kick fizzed just past the post.

While Italy race to seven points from four games, Georgia remain on three, before both sides resume their campaigns against Scotland in March. The Azzurri are now two points behind France and Scotland.

Georgia: Lomaia, Khizanishvili, Khizaneishvili, Kaladze,Shashiashvili, Kankava (Iashvili 70),Tskitishvili (Kandelaki 74), Menteshashvili,Martsvaladze (Gigiadze 85), Kvirkvelia, Ashvetia.
Italy: Buffon, Oddo, Cannavaro (Materazzi 74), Nesta,Pirlo (Mauri 64), De Rossi, Perrotta, Zambrotta,Camoranesi (Iaquinta 87), Toni, Di Natale.
Ref: Michael Riley (England).

Other Group B Matches
Scotland's fantastic start to Euro 2008 qualifying came to a halt as they toppled to a 2-0 defeat in Kiev. The Scots adopted a defensive approach but their stubborn resistance was broken on the hour by a close range shot from Olexander Kucher. Kenny Miller hit the crossbar with a speculative effort and headed a wonderful chance wide on 80 minutes. But Scotland lost Steven Pressley to a red card and Ukraine captain Andriy Shevchenko converted a late penalty. The sending off and the penalty were harsh but Scotland can have no complaints about the result.

France soared to go joint top of the group with a 5-0 win at home to Faroe Islands. Louis Saha and Thierry Henry started up front for Les Bleus and it did not take long for the Manchester United man to continue his prolific start to the season with the game's opening goal after just 37 seconds. His Premiership rival Henry doubled the lead on 22 minutes as it seemed the floodgates might open in Paris. But that was not to be the case thanks to a stoic fightback from the visitors and some poor finishing from the World Cup finalists. Raymond Domenech eventually bit the bullet, substituting his goal-scoring front two for Nicolas Anelka and David Trezeguet on the hour mark. And it turned out to be an inspired substitution, as Anelka scored the third on 77 minutes. Not to be outdone, Trezeguet bagged a brace with strikes in the 78th and 84th minute, as Faroe Islands remain bottom, with just one point to show from five games so far.


Group A
The result of the day in Group A came in Chorzow as Leo Beenhakker's Poland defeated Portugal 2-1. Luis Felipe Scolari's side may have reached the World Cup semi-finals but they have struggled so far in qualifying for Euro 2008 and now have just four points from three games following the defeat on their travels. Poland's match-winner was Ebi Smolarek with the Borussia Dortmund forward scoring twice in the opening 20 minutes. Smolarek took just nine minutes to drill a shot past Ricardo, and after another nine minutes he repeated the feat by converting a cross from Grzegorz Rasiak. Nuno Gomes did hit back deep into injury time but it was too little, too late for Scolari's men.

Serbia continued to impress with a 3-0 home win over Armenia that sees them sitting pretty at the top of the group with ten points from four games. However, it was not all one way traffic as Serbia had to wait until the 54th minute to take the lead through Dejan Stankovic's penalty after Nikola Zigic had been fouled by Armenian keeper Gevorg Kasparov. Inside eight minutes their advantage had doubled as substitute Danko Lazovic headed home Ivica Dragutinovic cross, and Zigic rounded off proceedings with a third in injury time after Rafael Nazarian had been dismissed for Ian Porterfield's men.

Finland continued their unbeaten run with a 2-0 victory away at Kazakhstan to stay second in the group. Veteran forward Jari Litmanen opened the scoring after 27 minutes as the visitors bounced back from a disappointing 0-0 draw in Armenia at the weekend, tapping home from close range after Mikael Forssell's shot was saved. Being an early kick-off the tie in Almaty gave Roy Hodgson's side the chance to move top of the group, temporarily at least, and Sami Hyypia made sure of the points on 65 minutes when he headed home from Joonas Kolkka's cross.

Belgium moved third, ahead of Poland on goal difference, following a 3-0 home win over Azerbaijan in Brussels. Timmy Simons opened the scoring for Rene Vandereycken's side from the penalty spot after 24 minutes, scoring Belgium's second goal in qualifying in the process. Kevin Vandenbergh doubled the lead two minutes after the break, and substitute Moussa Dembele added a third with eight minutes to go. Incredibly that was not Dembele's last contribution of the game as the AZ Alkmaar man still had time to be dismissed with five minutes to go due to violent conduct.


Group C
Turkey did their goal difference a world of good by thrashing Moldova 5-0, with Hakan Sukur hitting the net four times. Sukur had a hat trick before half-time, with three goals in the final 10 minutes of the half (35, 37 pen, 43). Not content to sit on a three-goal lead, the hosts continued to push for more goals and Sanli Tuncay added the fourth on 68 minutes. Sukur finished the scoring 17 minutes from time before being replaced by Halil Altintop in the closing stages.

European champions Greece kept up their 100 percent start to the qualifying campaign with a comfortable 4-0 win against Bosnia-Herzegovina. Angelos Charisteas' penalty (8) put the visitors in front, but it took until eight minutes from the end for the Greeks to double their advantage against the ten men of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Sasa Papac was dismissed on 50 minutes for the home side and Christos Patsatzoglou finally opened the floodgates (82), with Georgios Samaras and Kostas Katsouranis both adding to the score line late on.

Malta were shock 2-1 winners over Hungary to claim their first competitive victory since 1993. Dusan Fitzel's men came into the game with defeats in their opening two matches but would claim three points against the ten men of Hungary. Andre Schembri fired Malta ahead on 14 minutes, but Sandor Torghelle equalised five minutes later. Vilmos Vanczak saw red for Hungary (38) for foul and abusive language and his sending off paved the way for a home win. Schembri stepped up to net his second (53) and the visitors were unable to mount a comeback with a man down.


Group D
Germany maintained their 100 percent record in the group with a 4-1 win over Slovakia. The World Cup semi-finalists raced into a three-goal lead at the break to put the game beyond Slovakia. Lukas Podolski broke the deadlock on 13 minutes to put Germany in front. Michael Ballack doubled the lead for the visitors on 25 minutes, before Bayern Munich ace Bastian Schweinsteiger got in on the act on 36 minutes with the third goal for Germany. Stanislav Varga pulled a goal back for Slovakia just before the hour mark to give them some hope, but Germany wrapped up the victory 18 minutes from time with Podolski netting his second goal of the game. The win moves Germany onto nine points and they sit in second spot behind group leaders Czech Republic.

Wales found the perfect response to Saturday's mauling by beating Cyprus 3-1 in Cardiff to claim their first points of the Euro 2008 qualifiers. Jason Koumas struck first with a header after 33 minutes and Robert Earnshaw converted Craig Bellamy's low cross to double the lead seven minutes later. Captain Bellamy capped a magnificent individual display by adding a third with a cool finish on 72 minutes. But Yiannis Okkas denied Wales a clean sheet with superb lob late on.

The Republic of Ireland produced a much-improved display but had to settle for a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic. It gave the Irish their first point from three qualifiers and should be enough to ease the pressure on under-fire manager Steve Staunton. Roared on by the Lansdowne Road crowd, the Republic went ahead when Kevin Kilbane blasted in after 61 minutes. But the lead lasted just two minutes as Jan Koller's low shot crept inside the far post to bring the Czechs level. Despite now having dropped eight points out of nine, this was a heartening display from the Republic who were heavily criticised after their 5-2 defeat in Cyprus on Saturday.


Group E
Paul Robinson was left embarrassed as England crashed to a dismal 2-0 defeat against Croatia in Zagreb. Eduardo's header had given Croatia a deserved 61st minute lead before keeper Robinson was involved in a nightmare moment eight minutes later. Gary Neville's back-pass struck a divot as Robinson went to clear, and he watched in agony as the ball rolled in. Robinson had previously produced a string of saves to keep Croatia at bay.

Russia picked up their first three point haul in qualifying. Guus Hiddink's side broke their run of home draws with a late 2-0 win over Estonia to move onto five points from three games. Opening stalemates with Croatia and Israel did not bode well for the Russians, and after 77 goalless minutes in St Petersburg it looked like being the same old story. However, Tom Tomsk forward Pavel Pogrebniak put them en route to their first three points of the campaign with twelve minutes to go. With injury time approaching there was still time for Estonia to lose Raio Piiroja to a second yellow card, whilst Dmitry Sychev set the seal on the win for the hosts by netting with just seconds to go.

Srecko Katanec masterminded the end of Steve McClaren's 100 percent record on Saturday and his Macedonia troops produced that form again by securing a 3-0 win against the ten-man minnows of Andorra. Lazio hit-man Goran Pandev put the visitors in front after just 13 minutes when he produced a neat finish from Robert Petrov's cross, and the finisher turned provider just three minutes when Nikolce Noveski headed home his cross. Andorra had already accrued a minus 15 goal difference in their opening three games, and any hopes of a comeback were dashed when Tony Sivera was given a straight red card for violent conduct on 26 minutes. Macedonia failed to fully capitalise as they only added one more goal, with Ilco Naumoski slotting home from inside the box just after the half hour mark, but taking all three points in the Pyrenees gave them an enviable view from the summit of Group E alongside England, Croatia and Israel.


Group F
Sweden maintained their 100 percent winning record with a 2-1 victory in Iceland, while Denmark crushed Liechtenstein 4-0 to stay well placed for qualification. There was a thrilling opening ten minutes in Reykjavik, with both sides finding the back of the net. Iceland took the lead through Arnar Vidarsson (6), but Sweden responded quickly and equalised when Kim Kallstrom fired home just two minutes later. Christian Wilhelmsson then grabbed a winner for Sweden in the 59th minute to ensure that they remain five points clear of everybody else in the group.

Denmark, held to a surprise 0-0 draw by Northern Ireland at the weekend, returned to winning ways against minnows Liechtenstein. Liechtenstein held out for nearly half an hour, but once Daniel Jensen (29) struck, the result was never in doubt. Michael Gravgaard added a second three minutes later, before Jon Dahl Tomasson helped himself to a brace (51 and 64).

David Healy was Northern Ireland's hero again with his classy finish securing a deserved 1-0 win in Group F at Windsor Park. The home side dominated the first half but spurned a number of chances before Healy struck after 35 minutes. The Leeds United striker escaped his marker before slotting low into the bottom corner. Latvia posed more threat after the break with Maik Taylor blocking Girts Karlsons' close-range shot.


Group G
The Netherlands climbed to the top of Group G with a 2-1 home win over Albania. Marco Van Basten's men continued their unbeaten start to qualifying as Robin Van Persie's 15th minute strike set them on their way to victory. Arjan Beqaj's own goal minutes before half time looked like ensuring a comfortable evening, but the Dutch did not have it all their own way. Debatik Curri's strike mid-way through the second half made for a nervy end but the Dutch held on to leapfrog Romania into top spot.

Belarus picked up their first win of qualifying with a 4-2 victory over Slovenia at the Dinamo Stadium. The hosts were ahead mid-way through the first half when Denis Kovba found the back of the net. Their lead lasted less than a minute as Bostjan Cesar levelled and Klemen Lavric fired Slovenia in front just before the break. Two goals in eight second-half minutes from Sergey Kornilenko restored Belarus' lead and the victory was sealed five minutes from time through Vladimir Korytko.

Bulgaria were 1-0 winners away at Luxembourg, Aleksandar Tunchev scoring the only goal after 26 minutes.


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U21: Final eight for Netherlands confirmed

Belgium and Israel claimed the two remaining places at the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship with respective play-off victories against Bulgaria and France tonight to bring the qualifying campaign to a close.

They join the Italy, Czech Republic, England, Portugal and Serbia, who all booked their spots with play-off victories 24 hours earlier, as well as the Netherlands, the host nation, in next summer's eight-team tournament. The Dutch accepted the offer of hosting the tournament after winning the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in Portugal last summer.

Of the eight finalists, the Azzurrini - the most successful European country, Czech Republic, England and the Netherlands are all past champions. Serbia take part as an independent nation for the first time after enjoying success alongside their neighbours Montenegro in recent years, reaching the final in 2004 and the semi-finals last summer. Including Serbia, four of this year's eight finalists also featured in Portugal last summer, with the Czech Republic, England, Israel and Belgium the new faces for 2007.

The draw for the final tournament will be held at the City Hall in Arnhem, Holland at 17:00 (UK Time) on 24 November when the eight teams will be divided into two groups of four. Arnhem is one of four venues, along with Heerenveen, Groningen and Nijmegen, selected to host matches during the tournament. Group games will provisionally be played between 10 and 17 June next year, with Heerenveen and Arnhem each staging a semi-final three days after that.

The final will be on Saturday 23 June at FC Groningen's 20,000-capacity Euroborg. The biennal tournament has been moved to odd years to raise its profile and prevent it clashing with the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA European Championship.

U21: Spain v Italy

10 October 2006: Spain U21 1-2 Italy U21 [Agg: 1-2] (Palencia)
Italy won 2-1 in Spain and on aggregate to ensure the European Under-21 Championship's most successful nation will be attempting to win a sixth crown in nine tournaments next summer.

After a goalless first match in Modena last Friday, first-half efforts from Giorgio Chiellini and Riccardo Montolivo secured the Italy's ticket for the finals and rendered Roberto Soldado's strike for Spain - in the inaugural match at the Nueva Balastera Stadium in Palencia - as nothing more than a consolation.

It also means the Azzurrini could come up against the side who knocked them out of the 2006 finals in the 2007 edition, as the Netherlands will host the finals.

With Pierluigi Casiraghi's side not having conceded a goal in qualifying before tonight’s match, Spain knew they were in for a tough task once Chiellini had given Italy a 24th-minute lead. The Juventus defender, arguably his country’s best player in the recent championship in Portugal, lifted a left-footed lob over Spain goalkeeper Miguel Angel Moya from outside the penalty area to break the deadlock in style.

Having played brilliantly in the first leg, Moya was beaten by another fine goal nine minutes later as Montolivo beat him with a stunning volley. The goal left Spain needing three to progress, and home coach Inaki Saez brought on Soldado for Javier Arizmendi early in the second half as his side’s task grew forlorn. The Osasuna striker reduced arrears by heading in Javier Garrido's cross just before the hour, although Spanish hopes were ended as Javier Flano was sent off four minutes from time.

The European Under-21 Championships will take place from June 10 to 23, 2007.


Other 2nd Leg Results
Bulgaria 1-4 Belgium [Agg: 2-5]
Bosnia-Herz 1-1 Czech Republic [Agg: 2-3]
Germany 0-2 England [Agg: 0-3]
Israel 1-0 France [Agg: 2-1]
Portugal 3-0 Russia [Agg: 4-4 - Portugal qualify on away-goals rule]
Sweden 0-5 Serbia [Agg: 3-5]

Euro 2008: October 11 2006

These are all Wednesday's Euro 2008 qualifiers. All kick-off times are listed in UK time.

Group A:
Kazakhstan v Finland (1700)
Serbia v Armenia (1915)
Poland v Portugal (1930)
Belgium v Azerbaijan (1945)

Group B:
Ukraine v Scotland (1800)
Georgia v Italy (1900)
France v Faroe Islands (2000)

Group C:
Malta v Hungary (1815)
Turkey v Moldova (1900)
Bosnia-Herzegovina v Greece (1915)

Group D:
Republic of Ireland v Czech Republic (1930)
Slovakia v Germany (1945)
Wales v Cyprus (2000)

Group E:
Andorra v FYR Macedonia (1400)
Russia v Estonia (1600)
Croatia v England (1800)

Group F:
Iceland v Sweden (1905)
Liechtenstein v Denmark (1915)
Northern Ireland v Latvia (2000)

Group G:
Belarus v Slovenia (1700)
Luxembourg v Bulgaria (1915)
Netherlands v Albania (1930)

Group B - Match 3: Italy v Ukraine

7 October 2006: Italy 2-0 Ukraine (Rome)
World champions Italy finally registered their first win in Euro 2008 Qualifying Group B to lift the pressure on beleaguered coach Roberto Donadoni.

Massimo Oddo broke the deadlock from the penalty spot after 71 minutes and Luca Toni made it 2-0 ten minutes from time to hand the Azzurri the three points against Ukraine - and give Donadoni his first win in charge. It wasn't achieved without several nervy moments as Ukraine - even without star striker Andriy Shevchenko, who had a virus - posed the hosts several problems at the Stadio Olimpico.

Italy's struggles since their World Cup triumph in Germany over the summer have been well documented and they lacked self-belief in the early stages as Ukraine created two decent chances to take the lead. The first saw Anatoliy Tymoschuk test Gianluigi Buffon with a 30-yard drive and the second resulted in Oleg Gusev firing a shot straight at the Juventus custodian.

Italy finally started to settle and Alessandro Del Piero came close with a 12-yard shot after 20 minutes. Toni netted twice against Ukraine in the World Cup quarter-finals in Hamburg, but the Fiorentina star wasted a wonderful chance to add to his international haul on the half-hour mark, heading straight at visiting keeper Olexandr Shovkovskiy from Oddo's pin-point cross.

Toni and Tymoschuk then traded chances as the game finally started to open up after a scrappy start. AC Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso is not renowned for his attacking prowess but he twice came close after half-time. And, as Italy started to press, Vincenzo Iaquinta also tried his luck, his shot well parried by Shovkovskiy.

The pressure finally told when Andriy Rusol fouled Toni inside the area, referee Kyros Vassaras showing no hesitation in pointing to the spot. And Oddo showed commendable cool to slot the spot-kick into the top right-hand corner.

The hosts sealed the points eight minutes later, Toni volleying home Antonio Di Natale's left-wing cross.

Di Natale almost got his name on the scoresheet with nine minutes left but Shovkovskiy made a fine save. It mattered little though as Italy finally got their campaign up and running.

Italy: Buffon, Oddo, Cannavaro, Materazzi, Zambrotta, Gattuso, Pirlo, De Rossi, Iaquinta (Camoranesi 76), Toni (Inzaghi 85), Del Piero (Di Natale 61).
Ukraine: Shovkovskyi, Nesmachnyi, Shershun, Tymoshchuk, Yezerskyy, Rusol, Shelayev, Gusiev, Voronin, Vorobey (Milevskiy 73), Nazarenko (Kalinichenko 59).
Ref: Kyros Vassaras (Greece).

Other Group B Matches
Scotland sit proudly at the top of Group B after a fabulous win over France at Hampden Park. Thierry Henry hit the post as France dominated the first 45 minutes but Scotland improved after the interval. And Gary Caldwell, who was outstanding in defence, turned goal hero when he stabbed the ball home from a Paul Hartley corner kick on 67 minutes. France enjoyed the bulk of possession but Walter Smith's well-organised team worked hard for a famous victory.

Lithuania claimed their first win in the group after a late 1-0 success in the Faroe Islands. The Baltic nation dominated proceedings in Torshavn, but found the Faroes in resilient form, with goalkeeper Jakup Mikkelsen making a number of saves for the home side. It proved not enough in the end, as Lithuania broke the hearts of their hosts with a last minute winner from Andrius Skerla on his 50th appearance for his country. Skerla headed home Mindaugas Kalonas's outswinging corner from the right to give Lithuania three valuable points away from home.


Group A
Serbia top Group A after emerging with a win from a tight tussle against Belgium. Nikola Zigic's 54th minute close range finish ultimately proved enough to account for the visitors, who are in third place with four points from their first three fixtures.

Portugal record their opening victory in their second game of the group stage as they easily dispatched Azerbaijan 3-0 at Estadio do Bessa in Oporto. Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo continued his great form with two goals (25 & 63), which sandwiched an effort from Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho (31).

Poland also picked up their first win in the group with a useful 1-0 victory in Kazakhstan. After losing to Finland and drawing with Serbia, Leo Beenhakker's men got their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign back on track in Almaty. Ebi Smolarek was the match-winner when the Borussia Dortmund striker fired home with his right foot on 52 minutes.

Roy Hodgson's Finland were left frustrated by Armenia's rearguard action in Yerevan. The Finns dominated much of the match, but could not find the all-important goal to prevent a 0-0 stalemate.


Group C
Turkey maintained their perfect start to their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign with a 1-0 win over Hungary in Group C. The only goal of the game was a tremendous effort from Fernbahce forward Sanli Tuncay. It came just before the interval as Cetin Servat headed into his path and he brilliantly lobbed over Gabor Kiraly to seal the win. Zoltan Gera almost levelled in the second half with a fee kick but his effort hit the bar and Turkey hung on to claim the victory.

Turkey are now level on top of the group with Norway - after the Scandinavian nation lost 1-0 to European champions Greece. The only goal of the game in Athens came just after the half hour mark when Kostas Katsouranis fired home.
A terrific second half come back from Bosnia-Herzegovina gave them a 2-2 draw in Moldova. The home side raced into a two-goal lead as Sergei Rogaciov fired home twice (13 & 32 pen). Bosnia, though, battled back well and pulled one back on the hour-mark through Zvjezdan Misimovic. They then sealed a share of the spoils with 22 minutes left as Ivica Grlic pounced.


Group D
The Republic of Ireland suffered a nightmare night in Nicosia as Cyprus humiliated Steve Staunton's side in the Euro 2008 qualifier. After Stephen Ireland's early strike, goals from Michalis Constantinou and Alexis Garpozis put Cyprus ahead. Richard Dunne levelled before half-time but Constantinou's penalty restored the Cyprus lead on 50 minutes. Two Constantinos Charalambidis goals plus Richard Dunne's sending off completed the Republic's awful evening.

Wales' Euro 2008 hopes suffered a major blow as they were soundly beaten by an impressive Slovakia side in Cardiff. Dusan Svento slotted home the first to kick off a horror afternoon for keeper Paul Jones on his 50th appearance. A fluffed Jones clearance saw Marek Mintal score from 35 yards before Gareth Bale responded with a free-kick. Mintal's 25-yard screamer put Slovakia back in control, before Miroslav Karhan's chip and Robert Vittek's cool finish compounded Welsh misery.

Czech Republic handed out the anticipated thrashing to San Marino, by chalking up a 7-0 win in Liberec, to maintain their 100 percent start to qualifying. Marek Kulic gave the Czechs a 15th minute lead with his first goal for his country, and Jan Polak's right foot shot doubled the lead for Karel Bruckner's team seven minutes later. Milan Baros's left foot effort (28) and Jan Koller's header (43) erased any doubt over the destination of the three points. David Jarolim claimed his first international goal at the start of the second period, and Koller scored his side's sixth goal from close range in the 52nd minute. Baros's downward header twenty minutes from time completed the scoring - mercifully for the visitors, who have now conceded 20 goals in their first two qualifiers.


Group E
England's Euro 2008 qualifying campaign stuttered after a disappointing draw against Macedonia at Old Trafford. Steve McClaren's side wasted several chances, with Gary Neville and Steven Gerrard hitting the woodwork. Macedonia keeper Jane Nikoloski saved well from Frank Lampard and Peter Crouch, but Igor Mitrevski's header was only inches away from shocking England. Wayne Rooney was substituted on his return and Gerrard will miss the clash with Croatia after a yellow card.

Russia drew at home for the second qualifier in a row as Israel fought back to seal a 1-1 stalemate. Guus Hiddink's side could not beat Croatia in their opening encounter, and Israel proved to be another tricky prospect in Moscow, as Amit Ben Shushan cancelled out Andrei Arshavin's opener. Russia made a quick-fire start and broke the deadlock after just five minutes when Arshavin picked up a pass from Pavel Pogrebniak and fired home with his left foot. However with six minutes to go Ben Shusan silenced the home support as he beat Igor Akinfeev at the second attempt.

Croatia claimed their first win of the qualifying stages and an emphatic one it was as they hammered Andorra 7-0 in Zagreb. The hero of the evening was undoubtedly Basel striker Mlaen Petric - who helped himself to four goals. Petric had a brace by half time (12 & 37) before completing his hat-trick on 48 minutes and then adding another just two minutes later. Werder Bremen striker Ivan Klasnic made it 5-0 on the hour before Bosko Balaban (62) and Luka Modric (83) sealed victory.


Group F
Northern Ireland put in an impressive defensive display to claim a point in their Group F qualifier against the Danes in Copenhagen. Denmark dominated from the start with Jon Dahl Tomasson and Peter Lovenkrands going close before Jonny Evans made a vital clearance just before the break. The visitors offered little in attack while Denmark continually pressed and Daniel Agger hit the crossbar late on. A booking rules Michael Duff out of Wednesday's game against Latvia.

Sweden recorded an excellent 2-0 win over Spain to maintain their 100 percent start to Euro 2008 qualifying, but Luis Aragones's side have now suffered back-to-back defeats. Johan Elmander gave the Swedes the lead in the 10th minute - his crisp shot from Marcus Allback's cross finding the back of the net. Allback himself got on the scoresheet eight minutes from time to round off the win. The former Aston Villa man collected a cross from Christian Wilhelmsson before rifling home. Their third win sees the Scandinavians consolidate leadership of the group, but Spain are ailing and would appear, even if at this early stage, to have their work cut out to ensure a smooth passage to Austria & Switzerland.

Latvia earned a first three-point haul with an emphatic 4-0 victory over Iceland. The hosts effectively confirmed their victory inside 25 minutes - Girts Karlsons's 14th minute shot and Maris Verpakovskis's header less than 60 seconds later doing the early damage. The latter struck again just before the half hour, and Aleksejs Visnakovs's 20 yard shot in the 52nd minute completed the rout.


Group G
Romania moved top of their section following a 3-1 win over Belarus. Adrian Mutu got the ball rolling for Romania, when he turned in a cross from Florentin Petre just seven minutes in. And the lead was doubled by Ciprian Marica from long range just three minutes later. Belarus reduced the arrears in the 20th minute, however, when Sergei Kornilenko converted a chance created by Alexander Hleb. The hosts were made to sweat for the three points, but made sure of victory through Dorin Goian's header from another Petre assist.

Arsenal's Robin van Persie continued his fine recent form with an equaliser for the Netherlands against Bulgaria. Martin Petrov gave the hosts a 12th minute lead in Sofia, but van Persie's close range finish rescued a point for Marco van Basten's side, who are second in the group, having claimed seven points from their first three fixtures.

Slovenia got their own campaign off and running against Luxembourg with a 2-0 win. Milivoje Novakovic (30) headed his first international goal for the hosts, and striker Robert Koren wrapped up the three points just before the interval with a superb strike from distance.


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U21: Italy v Spain

6 October 2006: Italy U21 0-0 Spain U21 (Modena)
Italy’s chances of reaching the European Under-21 Championships in the Netherlands next year hang in the balance after wasteful finishing in the first leg of the play-off against Spain in Modena.

Solid defending and a faultless display from Mallorca goalkeeper Miguel Angel Moya helped the visitors earn a precious goalless draw.

In a balanced first half, both sides showed their respect for each other as a cagey opening failed to produce any serious goalscoring opportunities. Five-time champions Italy had the better of possession but were reluctant to risk all in attack while their opponents, twice previous winners, remained comfortable in defence.

The Azzurrini were more adventurous as the first half wore on, however. Fiorentina's Riccardo Montolivo, who scored both of the goals in the group stage last month, tried his luck with a low right-foot shot from 25 metres but the ball whistled just wide of Moya's post. Antonio Nocerino also went close just before the break, heading over the bar from Alessandro Rosina's free-kick.

Italy began the second half in more attacking mode and threatened to make the breakthrough when Rosina dribbled past two opponents and forced Moya to dive to his left to deflect an effort from outside the box past the post. Spain responded with an attack of their own as Kepa Blanco's drive was fisted away in the 70th minute by Giancluca Curci.

With ten minutes remaining Italy passed up another good opportunity when second-half substitute Giuseppe Rossi prompted a superb stop from Moya, the keeper flying to his right to palm the shot around the post. Moya was called into action again a minute from time when he deflected a close-range header from Marco Andreolli over the bar. It was from the resulting corner that Italy squandered perhaps their best chance of taking a lead into the second leg, as Graziano Pelle fired the rebound wide after Moya could only parry a long-range attempt from Montolivo.

The second leg will be played next Tuesday evening at the Nueva Balestera Stadium in Palencia. The winners will qualify for the Final Tournament, which will take place from June 10 to June 23 in the Netherlands.


Other Results
Belgium 1-1 Bulgaria
Czech Republic 2-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina
England 1-0 Germany
France 1-1 Israel
Russia 4-1 Portugal
Serbia 0-3 Sweden

Euro 2008: October 7 2006

These are all Saturday's Euro 2008 qualifiers. All kick-off times are listed in UK time.

Group A:
Kazakhstan v Poland (1600)
Armenia v Finland (1700)
Serbia v Belgium (1915)
Portugal v Azerbaijan (2100)

Group B:
Faroe Islands v Lithuania (1500)
Scotland v France (1700)
Italy v Ukraine (1950)

Group C:
Moldova v Bosnia-Herzegovina (1700)
Hungary v Turkey (1845)
Greece v Norway (1930)

Group D:
Wales v Slovakia (1500)
Czech Republic v San Marino (1615)
Cyprus v Republic of Ireland (1730)

Group E:
Russia v Israel (1600)
England v FYR Macedonia (1700)
Croatia v Andorra (1915)

Group F:
Denmark v Northern Ireland (1900)
Latvia v Iceland (1900)
Sweden v Spain (1900)

Group G:
Romania v Belarus (1815)
Bulgaria v Netherlands (1900)
Slovenia v Luxembourg (1945)

Donadoni freshens up Italy squad

Italy coach Roberto Donadoni has omitted both Antonio Cassano and Alberto Gilardino from his 25-man squad for the Euro 2008 qualifiers with Ukraine and Georgia.

Juventus veteran Alessandro Del Piero and Fiorentina's Luca Toni return along with Vincenzo Iaquinta and the previously suspended Marco Materazzi.

The new face is that of Lazio midfielder Stefano Mauri, while David Di Michele, Antonio Di Natale and Sampdoria’s Gennaro Del Vecchio retain their spots.

The World champions desperately need points in Group B after a 1-1 draw with Lithuania and a 3-1 defeat in France, so their chances of reaching the tournament in Austria and Switzerland depend on these next two games.

Andriy Shevchenko’s Ukraine – who were defeated 3-0 by Marcello Lippi’s men on their way to the World Cup triumph this summer – play at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on October 7. The trip to Tbilisi to take on Georgia will take place on October 11.

The squad will unite at the Coverciano training ground in Florence on Monday.


Italy squad
Goalkeepers: Christian Abbiati (Torino), Marco Amelia (Livorno), Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus).
Defenders: Andrea Barzagli (Palermo), Cristian Zaccardo (Palermo), Fabio Cannavaro (Real Madrid), Fabio Grosso (Inter), Marco Materazzi (Inter), Alessandro Nesta (Milan), Massimo Oddo (Lazio), Manuel Pasqual (Fiorentina), Gianluca Zambrotta (Barcelona)
Midfielders: Mauro German Camoranesi (Juventus), Gennaro Delvecchio (Sampdoria), Daniele De Rossi (Roma), Simone Perrotta (Roma), Gennaro Gattuso (Milan), Andrea Pirlo (Milan), Stefano Mauri (Lazio).
Forwards: Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus), David Di Michele (Palermo), Antonio Di Natale (Udinese), Vincenzo Iaquinta (Udinese), Filippo Inzaghi (Milan), Luca Toni (Fiorentina).