European champions Portugal lost their opening qualifier in
Switzerland, and France were held by Belarus, but Belgium, Greece and Bosnia
and Herzegovina made positive starts.
Group A
Sweden 1-1 Netherlands
Honours were even at the Friends Arena in Jan Andersson's
first competitive game as Sweden coach. Marcus Berg chipped in off the
underside of the bar in the moments before half-time, but Wesley Sneijder's
strike midway through the second half restored parity in what was the hosts'
first game of the post-Zlatan Ibrahimović era.
Belarus 0-0 France
The UEFA EURO 2016 runners-up remain in the doldrums after a
disappointing start to their qualifying campaign. Timofei Kalachev and Nikolai
Signevich gave the French defence a first-half scare, while at the other end
Andrei Gorbunov twice denied Antoine Griezmann, and Olivier Giroud found the
crossbar with a header.
Bulgaria 4-3 Luxembourg
Both sides scored in second-half added time, Alexander Tonev
having the final word after fellow substitute Florian Bohnert had made it 3-3.
Dimitar Rangelov's close-range finish had put the hosts ahead but Aurélien
Joachim struck twice to make it advantage Luxembourg before Marcelinho
levelled, Ivelin Popov restoring Bulgaria's lead.
Group B
Switzerland 2-0 Portugal
Without the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, the European
champions began their campaign with a defeat in Basel. Breel Embolo nodded in
the opener after Rui Patrício spilled from Ricardo Rodríguez, and Admir Mehmedi
hit the second following an elegant exchange of passes with Haris Seferović.
Nani headed against the woodwork in the second half and Switzerland's Granit
Xhaka was sent off late on.
Faroe Islands 0-0 Hungary
Despite treacherous winds, the Faroes made their best start
to a qualifying campaign since kicking off their UEFA EURO 2004 tilt with a 2-2
draw against Scotland. Hallur Hansson rattled the upright for the home side on
86 minutes, while Zoltán Stieber had a shot saved and Ákos Elek fired narrowly
over in a frantic finish.
Andorra 0-1 Latvia
The Andorrans are now on a 21-match losing streak but might
easily have done better. Ludovic Clemente found the frame of Latvia's goal
before the interval, Valērijs Šabala easing the visitors' nerves with a goal
after the break. There was then an agonising finale for Ildefons Lima, who
headed just over from a corner and had an effort saved by Andris Vaņins deep
into added time.
Group H
Bosnia and Herzegovina 5-0 Estonia
The Bosnians secured the biggest victory of the night after
Emir Spahić's early strike and Edin Džeko's penalty put them on the front foot
in the first half in Zenica. Estonia buckled in the closing stages, Haris
Medunjanin making it 3-0 before Vedad Ibišević and Spahić made further
additions later on.
Cyprus 0-3 Belgium
Two Romelu Lukaku finishes from close range ensured a
positive start for Belgium under new coach Roberto Martínez. The Everton man
converted rebounds after team-mates Thomas Meunier and Yannick Carrasco were
denied, Eden Hazard setting up Carrasco for a third. Michy Batshuayi had a late
penalty kept out by Kostas Panayi.
Gibraltar 1-4 Greece
Kostas Mitroglou's fine volley gave Greece a tenth-minute
lead, but Liam Walker replied with another tremendous finish – Gibraltar's
first FIFA World Cup goal. However, after Scott Wiseman's own goal, Kostas
Fortounis and Vasilis Torosidis both managed to squeeze in further strikes
before the half-time whistle blew.
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