Nikolaou the hero for 10-man Greece in Scotland
UEFA U21 EURO 2021 QUALIFYING - GROUP 4 (MATCHDAY 4)
Dimitris Nikolaou converted a last-gasp penalty to earn a pulsating 1-0 victory for 10-man Greece in Scotland in 2021 UEFA U21 European Championship qualifying.
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After captain Panagiotis Retsos was sent off with a second yellow card in the 63rd minute, Greece were forced to defend for their lives in Edinburgh, and the heroic effort was rewarded as Nikolaou scored a stoppage-time penalty to earn a memorable 1-0 triumph against the Scots.
Giannis Goumas’ troops now move into first place of Group 4 with 10 points from four matches. Scotland sit in third with eight points on the board, but they have played a game more than the Greeks and the Czech Republic.
Greece will host the Czechs on March 27, 2020 in the next U21 European Championship qualifier.
THE MATCH
The Scots, playing in front of a small home crowd at Tynecastle Park, came within inches of scoring in the opening minutes as Allan Campbell slotted wide when completely open on the right wing.
Scotland once again came close when Jordan Holsgrove flashed a powerful drive off target with Marios Siampanis scrambling to get across in time.
Not long later, Campbell thought he had broken the deadlock at point blank range following a Greek defensive error, but his goal was ruled out for offside.
Greece were struggling to create with the focus almost solely on defence. Nevertheless, Giorgos Daviotis was a danger on the right flank with his pace, and his deflected pass across the box was the closest Greece came in the first stanza.
The Greeks were much improved at the start of the second half. Competing with intent, energy and creativity, opportunities began to appear with the Scottish defence looking anything but solid.
Retsos had a tricky attempt palmed to safety, before substitute Fotis Ioannidis missed the net when clean through.
However, the game turned on its head with 27 minutes remaining.
Retsos, who had been off the pace all game long, picked up a second yellow for a cheap foul.
Sensing blood, Scotland subsequently set about making their numerical advantage count. For the most part, Greece dealt with the threat incredibly well, however Siampanis did have to make a few tough saves - especially when he pulled off an acrobatic stop to prevent a floating cross from drifting in.
The decisive moment arrived in the 90th minute.
Under pressure from Ioannis Papanikolaou, Daniel Harvie contrived to handle the ball inside the area, and Nikolaou stepped up to thump his ensuing penalty down the middle of the goal to spark wild celebrations on the Greek bench.
TEAMS
Scotland U21: Doohan, Harvie, Johnston, Maguire, Brandon, Gilmour, Campbell, Ferguson, Holsgrove (McLennan 85’), Kelly (Middleton 70’), Hornby.
Greece U21: Siampanis, Katranis, Nikolaou, Evangelou, Natsos, Balogiannis (Oikonomidis 30’), Retsos, Papanikolaou, Bouzoukis (Diamantis 77’), Daviotis, Kampetsis (Ioannidis 54’).
Group 4 standings in 2021 UEFA U21 European Championship qualifying:
1. Greece, 10 points*
2. Czech Republic, 8 points*
3. Scotland, 8 points**
4. Croatia, 6 points***
5. Lithuania, 4 points**
6. San Marino, 0 points**
*Played four matches
**Played five matches
*** Played three matches
HIGHLIGHTS
