A historic achievement for Kazakhstan! Entry into the euro is real again
Dmitry Zimin September 10, 2023, 18:35 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Even the president of the country came to the game against Northern Ireland! And the Adiev team did not disappoint.
After the recent defeat to Finland, it seemed to some that Kazakhstan’s fairy tale in this Euro 2024 qualifier had collapsed. It is not surprising. After all, before the match the team shared first place with the rival. And this is in a group that includes Denmark and Slovenia. They were expected to get at least a draw on their field and continue the race. But the result is a minimal defeat and an automatic relegation to the fourth line. Yes, yes, everything is very tight there. With nine points, Magomed Adiev’s team was three points behind leader Finland and one point behind Denmark and Slovenia.
Then you understand how important the next meeting with Northern Ireland was, the outsider of the group with only one victory. And the chances of fighting for something are almost zero. The Astana stadium packed, President Tokayev in the stands: Kazakhstan was expected to make a full recovery. Not without difficulties, but it happened.
Fans at the Kazakhstan – Northern Ireland match
Photo: https://vk.com/kff_team
Apparently, the pressure of the importance of the match greatly affected the locals. In the first minutes they did almost nothing. Like the guests. Just a lot of mistakes in transfers, losses and failed attempts to find at least something ahead. Zainutdinov, Beisebekov and Samorodov, with the help of the flanks, were almost excluded from the game. Attempts at long-range attacks also ended in nothing dangerous. It seemed like the game was going badly. Or even a sudden and unexpected decision. And so it happened.
In the 27th minute, Samorodov received the ball in front of the area, but instead of continuing the attack, he went around the opponent and shot into the far corner. A surprise for the defense and Peacock-Farrell. The goalkeeper jumped in the direction of the shot, but it was too accurate. The stands roared, Tokayev applauded the moment with joy.
Maxim Samorodov
Photo: AP/TASS
Just three minutes later, the Kazakh striker received a yellow card for simulation. Apparently, he succumbed too much to emotions and hoped that the referee would accept his fight in the box with Evans. But it was definitely too early for him to relax. In fact, at the end of the half, the opponent became more active and had an excellent opportunity to recover.
How Kazakhstan played with Finland:
Kazakhstan fairy tale – is that all? Adiev’s team irremediably lost to a competitor for access to the Euro Cup
Kennedy and McMenamin flew into the area and one passed it to the other. It seemed easier to score in this episode. But Makminamin reacted too imposingly to the moment and at the last second Alip took the ball from his foot.
During the break, the coaches made a couple of changes. But Northern Ireland definitely came out aiming to make up the gap. They could have done it from the beginning, when Washington corrected his teammate’s shot and only Shatsky’s skill allowed them to keep the score on the scoreboard. The guests sensed the opponent’s weakness and resorted to maximum aggression. Kazakhstan stayed in its own field and made almost no progress. Constant danger, although without hypermoments. During this period the only thing left to do was hold on, which is what the owners did. Adiev, at the same time, made more changes to at least somewhat change what was happening on the field.
The game became complicated with many minor fouls. But Adiev managed to interrupt the rival’s pressure. The game moved back to midfield and Kazakhstan was even able to increase the lead to two goals. However, the score remained the same: 1-0.
Meanwhile, Spalletti got off to a bad start with the Italian team:
Spalletti ruined his debut with the Italian team. The team runs the risk of missing the Euro Cup
Kazakhstan scored 12 points in the Euro qualifying group for the first time – a historic achievement! At the same time, the team remains second, with the same number of points as Finland. All because of personal encounters. But after this victory, Magomed Adiev’s team took another step to reach the final of Euro 2024.
