Lippi pleased with Cannavaro award

Italy's World Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi believes Fabio Cannavaro deserved to pick up the Ballon D'Or.

Lippi was delighted with the news the Azzurri captain and Real Madrid central defender had been named European Footballer of the Year on Monday, with Juvegoalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon runner-up.

"To have Cannavaro win the award and Buffon finish second is just the cherry on the cake in what has been an exceptional year for us," said Lippi. "It is as though Cannavaro has collected the award on behalf of all the players that won the World Cup."

Cannavaro became the first defender to win France Football magazine's prestigious award since Matthias Sammer in 1996, edging Buffon and Arsenal and France striker Thierry Henry, who came in third.

"I am not surprised that the award has been given to a defender," said Lippi. "The award is given to a player who has proved outstanding in a team, regardless of the role he plays."

Buffon was gracious in defeat for the prestigious accolade, which is voted for by a selection of European football journalists.

"Fabio has won because he was simply the best," he said. "He gave more superior performances than anyone else. I really didn't expect to get so close, although I did want to finish in the top three."

The Italy goalkeeper has not given up hope of taking home the award in the future. "I see no reason why this couldn't happen to me in the future," he added. "I will try, sooner or later it will happen."


Cannavaro wins Ballon d'Or >>>
Cannavaro nominated for FIFA World Player of the Year >>>
Cannavaro named in FifPro World XI team >>>

U-21 Championship: Draw Reaction

Pierluigi Casiraghi's Italy have been drawn in Group B of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship along with England, Czech Republic and Serbia. After the draw in Arnhem, the Azzurrini coach reflected on a tough group as did his counterparts...

Pierluigi Casiraghi (Italy coach): The two groups are equal because there are eight quality teams involved. I don’t think one team is stronger than any of the others. It’s very difficult being a coach to a player. When you play there is only one side to the game, playing your best for 90 minutes. As coach it is 24/7, thinking about the team, training, matches. It’s my first experience of such an important tournament but I will approach it thinking this will be a great experience for me.

Miroslav Djukic (Serbia coach): The group is very difficult, you could say the favourites are England and Italy, but I believe in my players and I’m sure we’ll do well. The English squad is very good, especially in attack where they have great pace, particularly [Theo] Walcott. We all know Italy, always a hard team to play against, a very competitive team who are strong on the counterattack. We played a friendly against the Czech Republic but this time it will be completely different as there is a lot at stake. We believe we can reach the semi-finals, but know it will be difficult to do so

Ray Clemence (England assistant): Italy have an incredible record so they will be the favourites in this group. There are two teams to qualify and three very enjoyable, but very difficult, games in prospect for England. It’s very, very important to qualify for these tournaments because this is about the development of international players. Moving up at any age, whether you’re 17 or a senior, is always a big step.

Ladislav Skorpil (Czech Republic coach): We didn’t expect an easy draw because of the talent on show. We hope to be good competitors and obviously hope we will qualify for the knockout rounds.

U-21 Championship: The Finals Draw

This is the draw for the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Finals made in Arnhem last November. Five-times European Champions Italy, unseeded for this tournament, have been placed in Group B along with Czech Repuclic, England and Serbia.

Group A
1. Netherlands
2. Israel
3. Portugal
4. Belgium

Group B
1. Czech Republic
2. England
3. Serbia
4. Italy

Pierluigi Casiraghi's Azzurrini will start the campaign against Serbia on Monday 11 June in Nijmegen. That will be followed by England on Thursday 14 June and Czech Republic on Sunday 17 June, both in Arnhem.

The tournament kicks-off in Heerenveen on June 10 2007, with the hosts the Netherlands playing Israel. The Final will take place in Groningen on June 23 2007.

Casiraghi and his counterparts have reflected on this tough draw. Read their views here >>>

The tournament will be shown live and exclusively on Sky Sports in the UK.


Full Schedule (All kick-off times are UK Time):
Sun 10 June:
Group A - Netherlands v Israel - 1715 - Abe Lenstra, Heerenveen
Group A - Portugal v Belgium - 1945 - Euroborg, Groningen

Mon 11 June:
Group B - Czech Republic v England - 1715 - Gelredome, Arnhem
Group B - Serbia v Italy - 1945 - Goffert, Nijmegen

Wed 13 June:
Group A - Israel v Belgium - 1715 - Abe Lenstra, Heerenveen
Group A - Netherlands v Portugal - 1945 - Euroborg, Groningen

Thu 14 June:
Group B - Czech Republic v Serbia - 1715 - Goffert, Nijmegen
Group B - England v Italy - 1945 - Gelredome, Arnhem

Sat 16 June:
Group A - Belgium v Netherlands - 1945 - Abe Lenstra, Heerenveen
Group A - Israel v Portugal - 1945 - Euroborg, Groningen

Sun 17 June:
Group B - Italy v Czech Republic - 1945 - Gelredome, Arnhem
Group B - England v Serbia - 1945 - Goffert, Nijmegen

Wed 20 June:
SF 1 - 1st A v 2nd B - 1715 - Abe Lenstra, Heerenveen
SF 2 - 1st B v 2nd A - 1945 - Gelredome, Arnhem

Thu 21 June:
Olympic Games Play-off * - 3rd A v 3rd B - 1945 - Goffert, Nijmegen

Sat 23 June:
Final - Winner SF1 v Winner SF2 - 1945 - Euroborg, Groningen


* The top two from each Group will progress to the semi-finals and qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games in China. However, if England reach the last four, there will be a play-off on June 21 between the two teams finishing third in the group stage for the remaining berth, as England are not eligible for the Olympics.

U-17: Italy and Serbia through

Italy and Serbia grabbed the two Elite round berths on offer in the last UEFA European Under-17 Championship qualifying round group - and their wins against Andorra and Malta were good news for Wales.

Before Group 4 started, Wales were the third-placed team from the eleven pools already completed with the best record against the top two in their mini-tournament. And after Italy and Serbia had each overcome both Andorra and the Maltese hosts on Friday and Sunday, Wales knew that their place in the Elite round draw on 5 December, like that of Italy and Serbia, was secure.

Serbia, who qualified for the 2006 finals in conjunction with Montenegro, took six minutes to take the lead against Malta on Matchday 1 in Hamrun through Milan Prso. Although Chris Mackay, Sheldon Grech and Mark Scerri went close for Malta, Vujadin Savic secured the points for Serbia four minutes from time.

At the same venue, Argentinian-born Genoa prospect Fernando Forestieri put Italy ahead 28 minutes in against Andorra. On the hour mark substitute Alberto Paloschi made it 2-0 and late on Forestieri and another replacement, Vincenzo Nitride, doubled the lead despite a valiant display for Andorra goalkeeper Oriol Oliva.

On Matchday 2 the action moved to sunny Corradino but Andorra again suffered a 4-0 defeat, this time at the hands of Serbia. Igor Misan struck on 20 minutes and added his second just after Prso had found the target late in the first half, with Savic again claiming a late goal.

Italy then ensured they, Serbia and Wales would progress as they also put four past Malta, starting with Paloschi's header in the 27th minute after the hosts had made a promising start. Federico Masi headed in just before the hour mark and Paloschi and Forestieri had time to take their mini-tournament goal tallies to three.

There was still first place to play for in the final match in Hamrun, and with Italy only needing a point against Serbia the 0-0 draw proved enough. Italy coach Luca Gotti told said: "We put up solid performances but not excellent in my view. Against Serbia we put up a very good performance in the first half, but then relaxed allowing our - very good - opponents to play. I must mention the Malta side, who in my view gave 110 per cent against us. Generally speaking I am happy with the qualification, which is always our number one priority."

Third position belonged to Malta after they won 1-0 against Andorra in Corradino with Miguel Ciantar scoring on the half-hour after being set up by Mark Scerri.

Friendly: Italy v Turkey

15 November 2006: Italy 1-1 Turkey (Bergamo)
The curtain came down on a glorious year for the Italian national team with an anti-climactic draw against Turkey in Bergamo.

Antonio Di Natale gave the hosts a 38th-minute lead after a blunder from substitute goalkeeper Volkan Demirel left the striker with a straightforward finish. Demirel had come on in the ninth minute as a substitute for Rustu Recber, who sustained a knee injury. But the Azzurri returned the favour three minutes later, with Marco Materazzi's own goal allowing the Turks to restore parity. The result though was secondary for the 22,000 crowd at the Atleti Azzurri d'Italia Stadium who had turned out to pay tribute to former Italy captain Giacinto Facchetti, who died in the summer.

The Azzurri went into the game looking to end on a high a glorious year which had seen them lift the World Cup in Germany. And the hosts looked dangerous from the outset, with Alberto Gilardino's close-range volley from Cristian Brocchi's assist forcing Rustu to palm over the crossbar for a corner. Shortly after, Volkan was forced to dive to his left following a deflected shot from Di Natale. Italy continued to push forward but created little up front.

On 35 minutes, Hamit Altintop's right-footed effort towards the near post was saved by goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. Volkan's error allowed Di Natale to open the scoring but it didn't hinder Fatih Terim's men who went in search of the equaliser. They were rewarded when Materazzi deflected Arda Turan's cross towards his own net in an attempt to stop the ball from reaching Hakan Sukur.

Italy coach Roberto Donadoni made five substitutions after the re-start but it failed to inspire the Azzurri. It was Turkey that showed the greater aggression and they nearly took the lead in the 53rd minute with Mehmet Topuz's close-range effort going wide of substitute Marco Amelia's near post.

The Azzurri struggled under pressure and would have gone behind on the hour mark had Materazzi not cleared away Altintop's strike on target that beat Amelia but found the Inter defender at the far post. At the other end, Di Natale almost punished Volkan again following his poor clearance, but this time, the keeper saved, in what was the last chance of the game.

Italy: Buffon (Amelia 46); Oddo (Zaccardo 46), Cannavaro (Barzagli 46), Materazzi, Zambrotta (Pasqual 71); De Rossi (Palombo 71); Camoranesi (Rocchi 59), Brocchi (Barone 59), Mauri (Aquilani 46), Di Natale; Gilardino (Bonazzoli 46).
Turkey: Rustu (Volkan 9); Hamit Altintop (Nuri Sahin 75), Gokhan, Cetin (Cimsir 85), Uzulmez; Sabri (Toraman 85), Emre (Gokdeniz 75), Aurelio (Tekke 85), Turan, Tuncay (Tumer 63); Sukur (Halil Altintop 62).
Ref: Busacca (Switzerland).


Euro 2008 Qualification - Group A
Finland have gone top of Group A after a 1-0 success over Armenia in Helsinki. The Nordic nation - currently managed by Englishman Roy Hodgson - leapfrogged previous leaders Serbia after Mike Nurmela's early strike at the Finnair Stadium. The HJK Helsinki midfielder headed home Jonatan Johansson's low cross from close range after 10 minutes of Wednesday's contest for the winner. The Finns were then indebted to goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen for making sure of the three points after he made two important second-half saves to maintain a clean sheet. The Armenians - managed by former Chelsea boss Ian Porterfield - remain winless after four games played.

Poland moved to within a point of leaders Finland after an impressive 1-0 victory over Belgium in Brussels. Radoslaw Matusiak's powerful low strike on 19 minutes proved to be the difference between the two sides at the King Baudouin Stadium. The result leaves Rene Vandereycken's Belgians four points adrift of top spot in the table.

Portugal eased past lowly Kazakhstan with a 3-0 home success. Simao Sabrosa gave Luiz Felipe Scolari's side the lead after eight minutes in Coimbra with a powerful right-foot strike after some good play from Deco. Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo doubled Portugal's advantage on the half-hour mark with fine low strike from near the edge of the Kazakhstan box. Simao sealed all three points with four minutes remaining after converting Ricardo Quaresma's corner from close range.


Group D
Germany lost their 100 percent record in Euro 2008 qualifying Group D after being held to a 1-1 draw by Cyprus. The draw was good enough however to put Germany top of the table on goal difference above Czech Republic. Germany got to a flying start with Michael Ballack firing them in front on 16 minutes with a free kick from the edge of the area. Cyprus stunned Germany two minutes before half time when Yiannakis Okkas equalised for the hosts. Ballack went close to restoring Germany's lead on 54 minutes when he headed Bastian Schweinsteiger's cross just wide. Miroslav Klose wasted a couple of good openings as Germany pushed forward in search of a winner. Neither side could find a winner as Cyprus picked up a surprise point to end Germany's winning start to qualifying.

Steve Staunton got his first competitive victory as the Republic of Ireland secured their anticipated win over San Marino at Lansdowne Road. A deflected Andy Reid free-kick, Kevin Doyle's first goal for the Republic and a Robbie Keane strike gave the Irish a 3-0 interval advantage. Playing at Lansdowne for the last time before redevelopment, Keane added two in the second half for his hat-trick. He netted a penalty on 57 minutes and then a close-range strike near the end. It was far from a brilliant performance from Staunton's men against such mediocre opposition, but it gave the fans something to sing about in the rain as they said farewell to their familiar, though dated, old ground.


Group E
Eduardo da Silva's hat-trick guided Croatia to a thrilling 4-3 win over Israel to push them top of the qualifying Group as England dropped to third. Roberto Colautti's tap-in gave Israel an early lead, but Croatia led 2-1 at half-time thanks to Darjo Srna's penalty and Da Silva's slick finish. The Brazilian-born Da Silva extended Croatia's lead in the 54th minute, before Yossi Benayoun made it 3-2. Da Silva then completed his hat-trick, before Coalutti scored again late on. Croatia top Group E with 10 points from four matches.

Russia continued their march towards qualification with a 2-0 win over Macedonia. The Macedonians managed to frustrate England at Old Trafford last month but were no match for Guus Hiddink's side in Skopje. Vladimir Bystrov scored his first international goal after just 18 minutes to fire Russia ahead, before Andrei Arshavin doubled their advantage with a fine solo goal on the half-hour mark. Macedonia could not get back into the game in the second half and Russia secured victory to move onto eight points. Israel, Macedonia and England are all level on seven points in third place.


Selected Friendly Results
Australia 1-1 Ghana (Played on Tuesday)
Wales 4-0 Liechtenstein (Played on Tuesday)
Malta 1-4 Lithuania
Georgia 2-0 Uruguay
Estonia 2-1 Belarus
Slovakia 3-1 Bulgaria
Ivory Coast 1-0 Sweden
Hungary 1-0 Canada
Luxembourg 0-0 Togo
Netherlands 1-1 England
Czech Republic 1-1 Denmark
Serbia 1-1 Norway
Austria 4-1 Trinidad and Tobago
Switzerland 1-2 Brazil
Egypt 1-0 South Africa
Italy 1-1 Turkey
France 1-0 Greece
Spain 0-1 Romania


View Euro 2008 Fixtures & Tables >>>

U21: Italy v Czech Republic

14 November 2006: Italy U21 0-0 Czech Republic U21 (Frosinone)
Pierluigi Casiraghi's unbeaten run as Italy coach continued as the Azzurrini were held to a goalless draw by fellow UEFA Under-21 European Championship finalists Czech Republic in Frosinone.

The visitors had the better start on a heavy pitch at the Stadio Matusa and Michal Papadopulos had the first opportunity to break the deadlock after eight minutes when his powerful left-foot shot from outside the penalty area whistled just over Gianluca Curci’s bar. Italy reacted late in the half only for Raffaele Palladino's shot from the edge of the area to fly over and, soon afterwards, Parma midfielder Daniele Dessena came close to scoring on his debut but misdirected his header when found in space by Alessandro Rosina.

Casiraghi's side improved after the break largely as a result of the introduction of Giuseppe Rossi and Francesco Lodi, who were at their creative best. Both substitutes came close to scoring towards the end of the game while Czech Republic goalkeeper Josef Kubasek was forced into further saves from Graziano Pelle and Domenico Criscito, Pelle hitting the post with a header from Lodi's pinpoint corner five minutes from time.

Casiraghi will lead the five-time European champions to the Finals which begin on June 10, 2007 in the Netherlands.

Azzurri: Don promotes Aquilani

Roma youngster Alberto Aquilani, Milan’s Cristian Brocchi and the return of Alberto Gilardino are the main new entries to face Turkey.

Roberto Donadoni has named the Italy squad for Wednesday’s international friendly to be played at Bergamo’s Stadio Azzurri d’Italia.

Still without Francesco Totti until 2007 due to a self-imposed Azzurri exile and the injured Alessandro Del Piero and Gennaro Gattuso, the Coach has not picked a particularly experimental side.

Aquilani is promoted from the Under-21 set-up, leaving space for Parma’s Daniele Dessena to come in for the Azzurrini’s encounter with the Czech Republic on Tuesday evening in Frosinone.

Italy squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Buffon (Juventus), Amelia (Livorno).
Defenders: Oddo (Lazio), Zaccardo (Palermo), Barzagli (Palermo), Zambrotta (Barcelona), Materazzi (Inter), Pasqual (Fiorentina), Cannavaro (Real Madrid).
Midfielders: Aquilani (Roma), Barone (Torino), Brocchi (Milan), Camoranesi (Juventus), De Rossi (Roma), Mauri (Lazio), Palombo (Sampdoria).
Strikers: Rocchi (Lazio), Iaquinta (Udinese), Di Natale (Udinese), Gilardino (Milan).

Lippi's keys to success

SPECIAL INTERVIEW:
"A coach doesn't have to be liked – the most important thing is that the players have secure leadership." UEFA Magazine's Simon Hart talks to the man who led the Azzurri to their fourth World Cup - Marcello Lippi...

It takes something special to leave Marcello Lippi lost for words but when he casts his mind back to 9 July, expressing how it felt to lead Italy to FIFA World Cup glory does not come easily. "The feeling when you win the World Cup is just extraordinary, it is not something you can describe in words," he said. Fortunately, there is an image of Lippi on the confetti-strewn pitch at Berlin's Olympic Stadium which does the job for him. "It is a picture of me smoking a cigar and looking at the cup," he explained with a smile.

That king-of-the-world moment is now four months old and Lippi is in the midst of a sabbatical from football. The 58-year-old had meant to take a break after leaving Juventus in 2004 but then "the national team called and you can't turn that down. It was a fantastic opportunity and experience but now I am going to do what I wanted to do two years ago – to stop for five or six months".

Lippi's love of football means he should be lured back to work before long. "I would like to start working again next year," he said. "I would like a few more years' work, either in Italy or abroad." For now, though, he is happy to reflect on a coaching career which has touched the highest peaks: UEFA Champions League glory with Juventus and now the world crown with Italy. Addressing the 16th UEFA Course for Coach Educators at the Italian Football Federation's (FIGC) technical centre in Coverciano recently, Lippi looked back on last summer and cited Italy's tactical versality as a key factor in their success. "You have to train your players to play in two or three different ways – that is what makes a team really capable of doing things."

Italy's 2-0 victory over the Czech Republic in their decisive final group match provided a case in point. "The Czechs play with one striker and lots of midfield players. I thought, 'Why should I give them an advantage?' So we played differently, with only one striker to balance it out. We knew if we beat them we would win the group and avoid playing Brazil, which was everyone's major concern."

Lippi faced a telling test of his tactical acumen in the World Cup final against a France side the Azzurri eventually overcame on penalties. "We were better in the first half and played really well. But they got on top in the second half, their technique and organisation took over." Italy's semi-final against Germany had taken its toll. "Some of our players were not at their best. We'd played 120 minutes against Germany, don't forget, and it had taken a lot out of them both psychologically and physically."

Lippi, who identifies a general trend away from pressing football towards "greater ball possession", found a solution by replacing Francesco Totti with Daniele De Rossi and Simone Perrotta with Vincenzo Iaquinta. "We had problems in midfield so I brought De Rossi in, while Iaquinta came in to maintain a presence in attack. From then we weren't in too much danger although we didn't create much ourselves either."

Lippi's long career, which began at lowly Pontedera in 1985 and has taken in ten different clubs, has taught him that for any coach "it is the quality of players that counts". Man-management is also crucial, however. He cites the example of Fulvio Bernardini, his coach at Sampdoria in the 1970s who "had a great personality, but he did not try to dominate others" and says this quality is more important than ever.

"We are talking about players who have amazing contracts and who in a couple of years are made for life. It becomes even more difficult when you have eight, nine different players from different countries. A coach must impose his own culture but not nullify the qualities of his men. He doesn't have to be liked – the most important thing is that the players have secure leadership." With these words in mind, it is interesting to hear about Lippi's handling of Francesco Totti, the Italy playmaker who faced a fight to be fit for the finals after breaking his ankle.

"I really wanted him to get the feeling I believed in him because I knew how determined he was. Nobody else could have played between midfield and attack better than him and I think the whole squad believed this too although objectively speaking he was not 100 per cent." Fortunately for Lippi, the gamble – like so many decisions he took last summer - paid off. And the result, in his words, was "the greatest satisfaction any player or coach can have".

Courtesy of UEFA.com Magazine.

U21: Czech out the Azzurrini squad…

Italy Under-21 boss Pierluigi Casiraghi has named his squad for next week’s friendly against the Czech Republic.

The Azzurrini will play on Tuesday at the Stadio Matusa in Frosinone and are scheduled to meet as a squad in Ferentino on Sunday evening.

Fiorentina striker Giampaolo Pazzini returns after recovering from a thigh injury and Udinese defender Marco Motta will also be part of the team after a one-year absence.

Among the 20 players called up by Casiraghi is Genoa defender Domenico Criscito, who subsequently wins his maiden call up at U-21 level.

Squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Curci (Roma), Viviano (Brescia).
Defenders: Andreolli (Inter), Chiellini (Juventus), Coda (Udinese), Criscito (Genoa), Mantovani (Chievo), Motta (Udinese), Potenza (Fiorentina).
Midfielders: Aquilani (Roma), Galloppa (Ascoli), Lodi (Frosinone), Montolivo (Fiorentina), Nocerino (Piacenza), Padoin (Vicenza), Rosina (Torino).
Strikers: Palladino (Juventus), Pazzini (Fiorentina), Pellè (Cesena), Rossi (Newcastle United).

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.