Euro 2012 Qualifying Playoffs: Ronaldo Leads Portugal Rout, Ireland End Drought

With Croatia, Ireland, and the Czech Republic all recorded comfortable wins in the first legs of their Euro 2012 qualifying playoff ties, those who were hoping to see a great deal of drama in the second legs may have been disappointed.

Sure, those three still had to navigate another 90 minutes before they could officially start preparing for next June, but it doesn’t take an expansive knowledge of soccer stats to know that the chances of Turkey and Estonia overturning large deficits in hostile environments were almost none, while it was highly unlikely that goal-shy Montenegro would be able to overturn a two-goal deficit on home soil against the Czechs.

The only tie that went into Tuesday’s second legs still well and truly up for grabs was Portugal’s tie with Bosnia, and while the aforementioned trio were in stroll and celebrate mode, that one proved to have enough in it over the course of 90 minutes to make up for what the other matches were lacking in excitement, suspense, and last but not least, goals.

Portugal Rout Ten-Man Bosnia

With the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani, and Edin Dzeko on the pitch, it was only right to expect at least a few goals in this tie. The first leg in Zenica didn’t deliver any, unfortunately, but the second leg in Lisbon more than made up for it.

Before even 25 minutes were gone, it looked like Portugal were well on their way to Euro 2012, thanks to two stunning long-distance strikes from their two world-class attackers.

However, Bosnia were back in it shortly before half-time. They were awarded a penalty after Fabio Coentrao, as unintentional as it likely was, volleyballed it in his own area, and Zvjezdan Misimovic coolly slotted it home to make it 2-1.

The game really changed early in the second half, and it’s no surprise Ronaldo was involved again. All it took was a dispossession, a perfectly timed Joao Moutinho through ball, a momentary lapse by Bosnia’s last line of defense, and Ronaldo’s pace, and Portugal were 3-1 up.

While Ronaldo was busy celebrating after rounding a helpless Asmir Begovic and slotting home his second, Bosnian defender Senad Lulic was vociferously protesting the goal. Unfortunately for the Lazio man, he was not only off about his opinion that Ronaldo was offside, but he was just plain off as well, as in off the pitch.

Bosnia didn’t give up after Lulic’s sending off, to their credit, and they pulled one back in the 66th minute when captain Emir Spahic hit the target from close range. But making a comeback when you’re down a man and facing a superior team is a tall, tall ask, and any hope they still had of forcing a draw that would’ve sent them through on away goals were soon completely crushed, as two Helder Postiga goals (72, 82) sandwiched around Miguel Veloso’s brilliant 80th-minute free kick put the result beyond doubt and then some.

The Lulic red certainly had an effect on Bosnia’s chances, but it’s fair to say that even if Bosnia had their full contingent of players, the match would have still ended in a convincing Portugal victory. Performances like Tuesday night’s are an example of just how good Portugal can be when they’re at their best, with their captain leading the way as a captain should in such situations.

Right now, many might expect to see Spain and Germany face off in the final in Kiev as they did in the Euro 2008 final and in the 2010 World Cup semis, and the likes of Holland, France, and Italy might be higher on the possible contenders list than Portugal. But if Paulo Bento’s side can step up in the tournament proper like they did on Tuesday night, it won’t be a surprise if they’re one of the last two standing.

Ireland Celebrate End of Euro Drought

After a 4-0 win in the first leg in Tallinn, it was about 99.5% assured that Ireland would be going to the Euros for the first time since 1988 and for only the second time ever.

Still, there were 90 minutes left to navigate in Dublin, and Ireland did that successfully. Stephen Ward struck in the 32nd minute to make it 5-0 on aggregate, and though his goal would be cancelled out shortly before the hour mark by Konstantin Vassiljev, the 1-1 draw did nothing to dim the delirium in Dublin. Sure, to seal the deal in style would’ve been nice, but simply sealing the deal was the objective for the night, and Ireland did so with ease.

It’s worth pondering for a moment how different the second leg might have been had things not gone so disastrously wrong for Estonia in the first leg. After all, even with a man advantage, Ireland were still only 1-0 up before goals in the 67th, 71st, and 88th minutes put the first leg and the overall result beyond Estonia’s reach.

However, Ireland were the superior team, and they certainly earned their place in Euro 2012. Considering the multiple near misses they‘ve had in qualifying for the Euros since that appearance in 1988, and that defeat against France in the 2010 World Cup qualifying playoffs and the manner in which it happened, celebrations should go on for a while.

After the match, Ireland coach Giovanni Trapattoni reflected on the past, present, and his future with Ireland beyond Euro 2012, saying, “Everyone is happy. I am happy that we didn’t lose tonight but we won the game away in Estonia. We have built a fantastic team and while we deserved to get to penalties in Paris to decide qualification, this time we proved that we deserved to qualify. Now we will talk to the FAI about our future and we hope to continue.” If breaking a two decade-plus long Euro drought isn’t enough to earn a contract extension, what is?

And though Estonia played themselves out of a real chance with all of their first leg mistakes, there’s a lot to be said for how they didn’t fold in the second leg, and for what they accomplished in even getting to the playoffs after being a minnow for so long.

Draw Sees Croatia Through Against Turkey

Ahead of the tie, it looked like Croatia-Turkey would be a hotly contested tie, not least because of the thriller that they had the last time these two faced off, in the quarterfinals of Euro 2008.

However, Croatia wiped out any chance of any drama or disappointment in only 50-odd minutes in Friday’s first leg in Istanbul, with goals from Ivica Olic, Mario Mandzukic, and Vedran Corluka, without a reply from the hosts, put Croatia in a commanding position going into the second leg in Zagreb.

So then, it was no surprise to see a goalless draw on Tuesday night, which was a result that suited Croatia just fine. And not only did it secure their third straight trip to the Euros, it also marked the end of Guus Hiddink’s time with Turkey, as the two sides parted ways after the defeat. Who knows where the well-traveled Dutchman will end up next, but it won’t take long before he’s fielding job offers again, that’s a certainty.

Czech Republic Extend Euros Streak to Five

Since independence, the Czech Republic has been a consistent presence in the European Championships, including a runner-up finish to Germany in Euro 1996 and a run to the semifinals in Euro 2004.

After a bumpy qualifying ride, the Czechs had no such bumps against Montenegro, and they’ve now qualified for the Euros five times in five tries as an independent nation.

Given that both teams fared fairly well defensively in qualifying, and that neither side posted a particularly impressive qualifying record, this one might have been considered the least intriguing of the four playoff ties.

In the end Montenegro proved to be hard to break down, but the Czechs proved to be even harder to penetrate, but late goals did the trick in both legs. Two goals in the final half hour gave the Czechs a 2-0 win in Friday’s first leg, which all but sealed the deal, as the only time Montenegro scored multiple goals in any of their eight qualifiers was in the 2-2 draw against England that secured their playoff spot.

But unlike that match against England, there would be no great comeback on Tuesday night. Montenegro were once again unable to put even one past Petr Cech, and Petr Jiracek’s 81st-minute goal gave the Czechs a 1-0 win on the night and a 3-0 win on aggregate.

Montenegro actually managed 10 shots on goal to the Czech Republic’s three, but only two of those 10 shots were on target, whereas the Czechs’ only on-target effort found the net, with Jiracek bursting through a sleeping Montenegrin defense and unleashing a low effort that deflected off of keeper Mladen Bozovic and in. Score another one for quality over quantity.

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