Denmark deals final blow to Greece’s World Cup dream

Greece’s agonising wait to suffice for a large tournament will spell connected for astatine slightest different fewer years aft Denmark handed them a crushing decision to bring their World Cup hopes to an end.

The “Ethniki” suffered a 3-1 distant decision against the Danes successful their 4th crippled of the World Cup qualifiers, with the effect mathematically eliminating them from making the tournament.

The Greeks were their ain worst force arsenic two errors astatine the backmost contributed heavy arsenic they fell three goals down by fractional time.

The archetypal extremity arrived successful the 21st infinitesimal when Christos Zafeiris delivered a disastrous backpass that was intercepted by striker Rasmus Hojlund and flicked into the bottommost left.

The hosts doubled their vantage via a Joachim Andersen country header (40′) and they made it three a infinitesimal aboriginal aft Konstantinos Koulierakis produced different horrible walk successful the box, which yet saw Mikkel Damsgaard hide the shot into the net.

Greece showed some absorption successful the 2nd fractional with Christos Tzolis uncovering the backmost of the nett successful the 63rd minute, though it proved to beryllium a consolation arsenic they resigned themselves to their third straight decision successful the qualifying campaign.

The “Ethniki” remains 1 three points earned from their 4 games with Scotland and Denmark supra with ten and Belarus successful past with nary points.

The squad were dejected aft the loss, lamenting the mistakes successful captious moments that outgo them dearly successful their past fewer games.

“That’s where we request to focus, spot what we request to improve, alteration to prosecute our adjacent goals, helping the younger players,” said Giorgos Masouras to ALPHA.

The experienced winger stressed his content that they should trust the process being driven by manager Ivan Jovanovic.

“We person to support this momentum going, it’s go a cliché, but we person to,” helium said.

We besides request to support the coach’s methodical approach. And everyone needs to critique themselves and travel backmost stronger for the adjacent challenges, to propulsion this effort a small further and with greater work for what is astatine stake.”

Konstantinos Mavropanos expressed his view that the team has performed overmuch amended than the results suggest, while adding helium is still optimistic astir the team’s chances of making large tournaments successful the future.

“From what we saw today and successful the erstwhile game, we did ourselves an injustice, so aft these games, I judge that the team will person much experience, particularly against teams similar Denmark, for example, due to the fact that there are much hard games ahead,” helium said to media.

“I judge we person a batch of anticipation for the aboriginal with so overmuch talent and so overmuch work that we person and enactment into our regular lives, so it’s conscionable a substance of time.”