(F14) European Qualification 1 - RESULTS

Please post match results here

GROUP A
Poland - Netherlands
Spain - Sweden
Germany - Czech Republic

GROUP B
England - Belgium
Turkey - Italy
Portugal - France

Turkey 0-2 Italy

3 (1) Shots (SOT) 13 (12)
52% Possession 48%
24 Tackles 14
2 Fouls 0
0 0
0 0
4 Offsides 0
1 Corners 2

Match Events

Italy: Candreva (56')Chiellini
Italy: Totti (88')Abate

Cleansheet Italy Buffon

MOTM: Turkey GK Zengin

GG BESHIKTAS Tough team and amazing keeper. Very well played game. GL the rest of the way.​

England 0-1 Belgium

3 Shots 15
2 SOT 12
49 Poss 51
17 Tackles 15
0 Fouls 1
0 Offsides 1
0 Corners 5

70' C. Benteke (E. Hazard)

CS: T. Coutrois
MOTM: J. Hart 9.0​

WCQ Matchday 1

(Broncos218) Poland 1 - 0 Netherlands (danwin)

Match Facts:
1 Goals 0
9 Shots 6
4 SOT 2
50% Possession 50%
9 Tackles 21
0 Fouls 2
0 1
0 0
1 Offsides 1
4 Corners 1

Poland:
R. Lewandowski (32') K. Glik
CS: W. Szczesny

Netherlands:
D. Janmaat (89')

MOTM: M. Magiera - Poland (8.4)​

Lewandowski Goal Proves To Be Enough For Poland
Poland played host to the Netherlands today, as both nations looked to start off their WC qualifiers. The Dutch looked the better side for the first half hour of play, but Lewandowski soon changed that. In the 32nd minute, Lewandowski struck a shot into the back of the net to give Poland a 1-0 lead. Coach Bronc was then irate just minutes later when Obraniak was taken down in the box and no penalty was awarded. In the end though, it didn't matter as Lewandowski's goal was enough to earn the victory for Poland. LB Mariusz Magiera earned the starting nod for Poland despite not having the credentials of some others at his position, but the decision to start him proved to be a wise one. It appeared Coach Bronc elected to start Magiera as he provides more of a defensive presence, a necessity against a team filled with stars. Magiera won Man of the Match honors with his performance, and Coach Bronc commented on his play post-match by saying, "Magiera was a major factor in preventing Netherlands' wing play. He played the position perfectly and was never caught too far up the pitch, allowing us to have a solid backline all match long." With 3 points now in hand, Poland will look to improve upon that total against Germany in their next qualifier.

gg danwin

Following a corner, Glik finds Lewandowski, who proceeds to fire in the game's lone goal​

Spain 1-1 Sweden

5 (3) Shots (SOT) 13 (8)
41% Possession 59%
11 Tackles 14
1 Fouls 2
0 1
0 0
3 Offsides 0
1 Corners 3

Match Events

Spain: Fabregas (22')
Sweden: Elmander (76')
Sweden: Ekdal (88')Toivinen

MOTM: Sweden MF Ekdal (9.5)​

Spain scored first on a purely deflected shot that saw the ball go the totally opposite way of Sweden's keeper. But Isaksson didn't see much action the rest of the match, as Spain played long ball for some reason, cedeing the bulk of possession to the Nordic visitors. It was looking like another boring SPanish (albeit wet) win when Ekdal collected a long clearance, took a few dribbles upfield and fired a precise 35-yard howitzer to stun the Bernabeu and secure a draw.

GG Selvy9.

Deutschland vs Česká Republika
0 Goals 0
2 Shots 7
0 SOT 2
52% Poss. 48%
13 Tackles 21
0 Fouls 1
0 0
0 0
2 Offsides 1
0 Corners 1

Match Events

CS - M. Neuer
CS - P. Cech

MOTM - P. Jiracek
​

Munich - A clash of regional rivals at the Allianz Arena in the first World Cup qualifying match left both teams unsatisfied, as no blood was drawn and a heavily defensive match produced very little fireworks. The Czech Republic's 4-4-2 formation was stifling in its closing down the center of the pitch, completely closing off the playmaking of Ozil, Schweinsteiger and Lahm, on whom Frenchie1916 was relying to distribute the ball and create chances.

"I take full responsibility for the outcome of this match," Frenchie said. "I picked a team with only one true striker and relied on a midfield to be the engine of creativity. When BigSmooth33 shut that midfield down, we had no way of getting Gomez the ball and no Plan B on which to fall back. I came out with a more aggressive 4-3-3 (from a 4-2-3-1) in the second half, but I didn't have the ideal personnel to implement that formation. It was slightly better, and it was only then that we managed to start pressing higher up the pitch, but it was still and inadequate display on our part."

For his part, BigSmooth33 was methodical in his approach, working the ball wide to his pacey wings - most often Arsenal's Tomas Rosicky - cycling it back inside and looking for the offensive forwards in Eintracht Frankfurt's Vaclv Kadlec and Hamburg's attacking midfielder in Petr Jiracek.

But in the end, the two managers seemed more concerned about not losing the match than they were about winning it.

"The simple fact is you're not going to win games if you don't score goals," Frenchie said. "I know BigSmooth33 is probably as disappointed with a 0-0 draw as I am. Where it shows some defensive prowess, it also demonstrates, at least on my part, a disturbing and ongoing trend of offensive anemia. If Germany does not make it to the World Cup finals, this campaign will be the biggest failure the world of football has ever seen."

Portugal vs France
1 Goals 1
5 Shots 7
4 SOT 4
57% POSS 43%
12 Tackles 27
2 FOuls 3
1 0
0 0
2 offsides 0
3 Corners 3
80% Sh Acc 57%
81% Pa Acc 63%

4' Bruno Alves Miguel Veloso
82' Fabio Coentrao
90' S. Nasri G. Clichy

MOTM - Bruno Alves 8.6
gg MiaFLSurf

Portugal came out on the front foot and found a goal from a corner following a series of offensive moves. Bruno Alves was able to beat the on-rushing keeper to an in-swinging corner in the 4' minute. Portugal dominated the rest of the half and really needed to capitalize and move up 2-0, which they failed to do. The 2nd half was all France, as the pressure was turned up. Ultimately, Portugal's weakness, its defense, was exposed. Clichy was able to nick the ball off a defender following a throw-in on the wing about 25 yards out. The Portuguese defense was able to scramble the ball away but the French pressure 20 yards from the Portuguese goal forced a terrible clearance and Nasri was able to one-time a short Clichy pass from 12 yards out past Rui Patricio for the equalizer. ​