European Championship Qualifiers: Winners and Losers from Friday's Games
Qualification for the 2016 European Championship continued Friday as 16 teams took part in eight matches across the continent.
World champions Germany claimed a win to move atop their group, while the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland both improved their chances of qualifying. In the early game, Scotland suffered a defeat in Georgia that leaves their chances in doubt.
Here, B/R names winners and losers from Friday's matches.
Friday's Scores
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Group D
Georgia 1-0 Scotland
Germany 3-1 Poland
Gibraltar 0-4 Republic of Ireland
Group F
Faroe Islands 1-3 Northern Ireland
Greece 0-1 Finland
Hungary 0-0 Romania
Group I
Denmark 0-0 Albania
Serbia 2-0 Armenia
Winner: The Emerald Isle
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Friday was a good night to be Irish.
In Group D, the Republic of Ireland routed hosts Gibraltar 4-0 behind a Robbie Keane brace. The result took Martin O'Neill's side above Scotland into third place in Group D, just two points behind Poland.
With three games to go, a spot in the playoffs is looking like a distinct possibility, while automatic qualification isn't out of the question.
In Group F, Northern Ireland overcame a first-half equalizer to win 3-1 at the Faroe Islands. Gareth McAuley scored twice, including the winner, as Michael O'Neill's side took over first place in the group. With one more win, Norn Iron would clinch a spot at Euro 2016.
It would be the team's first appearance in the European Championship finals and their first trip to a major international tournament since the 1986 FIFA World Cup.
Winner: Robbie Keane
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Republic of Ireland captain Robbie Keane netted two more goals early in the second half Friday night, helping his side put the result beyond doubt against Gibraltar. In doing so, the Los Angeles Galaxy forward raised his career tally to 67. No other active player has scored more at the international level.
That in itself is an impressive fact, but consider this: As FAI tweeted during the match, Keane has scored an international goal in each of the last 18 years. Such longevity and consistency are almost unbelievable, and together they pay testament to what a fine player Keane remains.
Loser: Scotland
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Scotland had an opportunity Friday. Coming into the night's qualifiers, Gordon Strachan's side trailed Group D leaders Poland by just three points. What's more, Poland and Germany were playing each other, so it was certain that one or both of the teams ahead of Scotland would drop points.
A victory at Georgia in the day's earliest match would have pulled the Scots level atop the group, at least for the time being. But instead, Scotland lost 1-0 and looked toothless in doing so.
At one point in the second half, Daily Record Sport tweeted that Scotland had "less cutting edge than a plastic spoon." At full time, Opta noted that Strachan's team had failed to place a shot on target.
So what happened? Scotland entered the game in third place, while Georgia had won just once—against minnows Gibraltar—in six games. According to B/R contributor Stefan Bienkowski, Scotland wilted under the weight of expectations, failing to deal with the pressure of being the favored team.
"[The match was an] example of how Scotland lack mentality to match expectations. This Georgia side are exceptionally poor. We can't handle being favourites," Bienkowski tweeted.
He added: "Put us up against Italy, Poland, Germany and even Ireland and we'll battle like warriors. Ask us to win a game and we crumble."
The defeat put a significant dent in Scotland's qualification hopes. While it's true that three matches remain, two of those are against Poland and Germany, the two toughest teams in the group. Both of those games will come on home soil, so there's some hope. But Strachan and his players will know that they missed an opportunity in Tbilisi.
In 2007, the Scots lost 2-0 in Georgia, a result that cost them a place at Euro 2008. This defeat could prove just as damaging.
Loser: The Netherlands
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The Netherlands obviously didn't play Friday. The Oranje lost 1-0 at home to Iceland on Thursday, a result that was a big disappointment on its own.
But the bad news only worsened for the Dutch on Friday, when news came down that 31-year-old winger Arjen Robben would miss four weeks with a thigh injury, per Press Association (via the Guardian).
Robben had to leave the Iceland match in the first half, and in hindsight, his premature departure only foreshadowed the sense of doom and gloom that would surround the team after the defeat. With three games left in Group A, the Dutch find themselves outside the two automatic qualification spots.
And with Robben set to miss Sunday's game in Turkey, the mood around the team must have just become even more dour.
Winner: Bayern Munich
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Germany and Poland played out a thrilling contest in Frankfurt, with Germany claiming a 3-1 victory to leap over their visitors to the top of Group D.
Both sides featured squads full of immensely talented players, and not surprisingly, both thoroughly impressed. Germany were deserving winners, but in pushing their hosts to the limit for most of the night, Poland showed they belonged as well.
In that sense, both teams were winners. But one team—actually a club—was even more so: Bayern Munich.
Bayern players scored all four goals on the night. Thomas Muller opened the scoring in the 12th minute and Mario Gotze doubled Germany's advantage seven minutes later. Robert Lewandowski pulled a goal back for Poland late in the first half—and came close on a number of occasions—before Gotze settled matters with his second of the night, in the 82nd minute.
What an embarrassment of attacking riches, and all together at the same club.
