BIH 3-1 GRE: Disastrous Defending But Why Greek Fans Should Not Be Too Upset

March 22nd, 2013 | by: nick | View Comments

Greece displayed a terrible match performance today against Bosnia in Zenica. Edin Džeko scored two headed goals from free kicks while an Orestis Karnezis penalty blunder provided them with the third tally. The Greek fans were largely silenced as the final whistle was blown. Naturally every Greek fan is upset because this makes direct qualification more difficult. However the elevation in difficulty does not make it impossible. Despite today’s disappointment here are some reasons why not to be too disappointed.

Reason 1: It is only halfway through the campaign
Up to this match, Greece had a very good record with three victories and one draw. With a loss today, it makes direct qualification difficult but there is still time to correct things and get the campaign back on track.

Reason 2: Greece scored the only non stoppage goal
Despite playing horribly and looking very sloppy on field, Greece actually scored the only goal that was not from a set piece or penalty. A beautiful passing combination between Maniatis and Samaras, allowed Gekas to find a consolation goal. The home side, which played very well, scored two goals from free kicks and one from a penalty.

Reason 3: Greece have bounced back after midseason defeats
If we think back to 2007, Greece were defeated 1-4 by Turkey at the same point of the campaign while qualifying for Euro 2008. What followed, were three consecutive victories against Malta, Hungary, and Moldova. After a tough draw against Norway in Oslo, they recovered once again and defeated Bosnia, Turkey, Malta, and Hungary. Greece ended the campaign at the top of the group with 31 point from 12 matches. If it happened in 2007, it could happen in 2013.

Reason 4: Bosnia could still loose a game
Bosnia have just as many games to play and could be defeated in any of them. It is very difficult to assume that this victory will translate to every remaining match. They still have to play Slovakia twice, a team that caused Greece a lot of trouble in Bratislava last October.

Reason 5: Greece have played their most difficult matches
Having played Bosnia twice and Slovakia once (in Bratislava), Greece put their most difficult matches behind them. The next two matches are away to Lithuania and Liechtenstein, while the last three will be in comfort of the home fans against Latvia, Slovakia, and Liechtenstein once again.

Here are Fifa’s thoughts on the match.