14 wins in five years for the struggling Greeks
This week, the Greek national team hit a new low, conceding a bitter 2:3 defeat to Armenia in UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying and setting unwanted records in the process.
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Incredibly, ever since the 2014 FIFA World Cup in which Greece reached the Last 16, the Ethniki Omada have only won 14 matches! Overall, the Greeks have competed in 46 official and friendly matches over the course of the past five years, tallying 14 wins, 11 draws and a large 21 defeats. A statistic which is verging on downright embarrassing for a nation which became European champions only 15 years ago.
Here is a breakdown of those 46 games:
The loss to Armenia marked the fourth consecutive match in which Greece conceded at least two goals in the first half. In Bosnia, Greece found themselves 0:2 down in the opening stages before rescuing a dramatic 2:2 draw, but the team did then concede a 1:2 loss to Turkey in a friendly with both goals having been scored within the first 17 minutes. Last week, the Ethniki were trailing 0:3 in the first half against the slick Italians, and the players conceded twice in the maiden 45 minutes of the 2:3 setback against Armenia. And to think Greece were once masters of delivering defensive masterclasses…
This was the first time when the Greek national team conceded three goals in two successive European Championship qualifiers. Back in the 1970s, the Greeks contrived to lose against Spain 2:3 and Yugoslavia 2:4 in two matches in a row, but those games were a part of the qualifying phase for the 1974 FIFA World Cup.
Greece are languishing five points behind second-placed Finland in Group J of UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying after four rounds. The next matches will be held in September.
