European Championship Qualifiers: Winners and Losers from Thursday Games
Wales and Iceland moved within sight of qualification as Euro 2016 qualification resumed Thursday across the continent.
Both sides notched 1-0 victories away from home, and both are now just one win away from reaching the final tournament. Elsewhere in a full night of qualifying, Belgium came from behind to beat Bosnia-Herzegovina, Azerbaijan managed a point against Croatia.
Here, B/R selects winners and losers from the day's games.
All the Scores
1 of 7
Here is a look at Thursday's results.
Group A
Czech Republic 2-1 Kazakhstan
Netherlands 0-1 Iceland
Turkey 1-1 Latvia
Group B
Belgium 3-1 Bosnia-Herzegovina
Cyprus 0-1 Wales
Israel 4-0 Andorra
Group H
Azerbaijan 0-0 Croatia
Bulgaria 0-1 Norway
Italy 1-0 Malta
Big Winners: Wales and Iceland
2 of 7
Iceland and Wales collected narrow 1-0 victories away from home on Thursday, and in both situations, the victories all but assured qualification for Euro 2016.
That is no small statement for either nation.
In Amsterdam, Gylfi Sigurdsson scored a second-half penalty to lead Iceland past the Netherlands 1-0. With the three points, the visitors moved eight points clear of the Dutch, who are now a distant third in Group A. Because the top two teams in each group qualify automatically for the Euro 2016 finals, Iceland need just one more point in their final three qualifiers.
Even if by some miracle they lose all three, Iceland are already assured of third place and a spot in the playoffs. But what's more likely is that the tiny island nation will reach the finals of a major tournament for the first time in its footballing history.
Meanwhile, in Nicosia, Gareth Bale powered in a late header to give Wales a 1-0 win over hosts Cyprus. The result kept the Dragons in first place in Group B with 17 points. Only three games remain, and if Wales beat Israel on Sunday, Chris Coleman's team would secure the country's first berth in a major tournament since the 1958 World Cup.
Big Loser: Netherlands
3 of 7
Not much went right for the Netherlands in new coach Danny Blind's first game in charge.
Star winger Arjen Robben limped off with an injury in the 31st minute, and defender Bruno Martins Indi drew a straight red card just two minutes later following a incident with Kolbeinn Sigthorsson. The Dutch needed to beat Iceland to find a way back into contention in Group A, but the injury and dismissal made the hosts' task extremely difficult.
Blind's side managed to keep the game scoreless until the second half, when Sigurdsson netted the winner via the penalty spot. Defeat left the Dutch eight points behind leaders Iceland and six behind second-place Czech Republic.
According to Opta, this was only the second Euro qualifying loss on home soil for the Netherlands. The first came in 1963 against Luxembourg.
Automatic qualification is still technically possible, but it appears that the Netherlands will have to go through the playoffs to reach Euro 2016. But even that might prove difficult.
In their final three games, the Dutch face long trips to Turkey and Kazakhstan, followed by a home match against the Czechs on the final matchday. Qualification could come down to the wire.
Winner: Gareth Bale
4 of 7
Gareth Bale underlined his value to Wales with the winning goal in the Dragons' narrow 1-0 victory in Cyprus. The strike itself was stunning, with the Real Madrid man powering in a bullet header from an Ashley Richards cross eight minutes from time.
As Stuart James noted in his report for The Guardian, Bale had not been at top form all night. But his brilliance paid dividends for Wales in the end:
"For much of the night the world’s most expensive footballer had struggled and at times it seemed as if he was trying too hard to bend a disappointing game in Wales’s favour. Yet everything fell into place eight minutes from time when Ashley Richards, who was the standout performer for Wales, produced the cross from the right that Bale met with an emphatic header to spark wild celebrations on the bench.
"
It is nearly impossible to put into words how important Bale is to Wales, but statistics can help quantify the player's contribution. According to Squawka, Bale has scored (six) or assisted (two) eight of Wales' nine goals in qualifiers. That works out to 88.8 percent of the team's goals. And as Opta noted, only Poland's Robert Lewandowski has found the net more in qualifying than Bale.
"Is there a team in world football as reliant on one player as Wales is on Gareth Bale?" B/R contributor Graham Ruthven tweeted.
In some cases, such reliance might be negative. But considering Bale's current run of form at the international level, it can only be a positive. With each game, Bale's legend only grows larger in Wales.
"We were able to nick a goal that has put us in a great position," Bale said, per BBC Wales Sport. "We knew the task coming into this game; we knew what we have to do."
Loser: Bosnia-Herzegovina
5 of 7
First the good news: Edin Dzeko scored with a clever header to give Bosnia-Herzegovina a first-half lead in Belgium. To that point, the visitors were the better side and appeared set for a positive result.
Now the bad news: Belgium scored the next three goals to claim a 3-1 victory and keep pace with Wales in Group B. The defeat left Bosnia-Herzegovina in fifth place through seven games, six points off the second automatic qualification place, and four behind Israel in third place.
At this point, it appears Bosnia's only route to Euro 2016 lies in the playoffs. But with a four-point gap to make up, even finishing third will be difficult.
Winner: Kevin De Bruyne
6 of 7
Last week, Kevin De Bruyne signed with Manchester City in a mega-money move from Wolfsburg.
This week, the midfielder scored a goal and assisted another as Belgium beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 3-1. In doing so, he gave City fans a glimpse of what to expect in the coming months.
With Belgium trailing 1-0 in the 23rd minute, De Bruyne whipped in a corner that Marouane Fellaini headed in for the equalizer. Twenty-one minutes later, the 24-year-old received a pass well outside the box, swiveled and smacked a low, swerving shot into the bottom corner for the go-ahead goal.
It turned out to be the winner, and it must have left City fans salivating.
Winners: Azerbaijan and Robert Prosinecki
7 of 7
What a difference 11 months can make.
When Croatia hosted Azerbaijan early in Euro 2016 qualifying last October, the home side ran out with a 6-0 win. When the two sides met again Thursday in Baku, the game finished in a scoreless draw.
Admittedly, Croatia fluffed a number of chances, but it would be harsh to ignore the progress Azerbaijan have made under new coach Robert Prosinecki. In three games since Prosinecki took charge, the Azeris have gone unbeaten without conceding a single goal, collecting five points in the process.
Azerbaijan have never qualified for a major tournament, and with just five points through seven matches in Group H, that won't change any time soon. But Prosinecki has done a fine job with the team since taking over from Berti Vogts, and Thursday's draw with his native Croatia—currently ranked No. 14 in the world—must be regarded as progress.
