A wonderful evening in football. The worst team in Europe won the first official match in history!
Anatoly Romanov September 6, 2024, 00:45 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
The San Marino team has been waiting for this for 37 years.
On the first day of the new Nations League season, something happened… what should I call it? No, not even a sensation. A real miracle! The San Marino team won its first ever official (tournament) match victory. It was the second in all the years of the national team’s existence. They have been there since September 1987.
The San Marino national team is the weakest in Europe according to FIFA rankings. It is ranked only 210th. Against this background, even the teams from Vietnam and Thailand, which Russia is currently playing against, will look like top teams. San Marino’s squad consists mainly of players from local clubs, as well as players from little-known Italian teams from God knows what divisions.
It is not surprising that in the League of Nations the San Marino team plays in the weakest League D. Their rivals in the group are Liechtenstein (199th place in the FIFA ranking) and Gibraltar (198th place). The winner of this trio will go directly to League C, and the second place will go to the playoffs. Now the team of 55-year-old Italian Roberto Civoli, unexpectedly for himself, got involved in the fight for promotion in the category and took the lead in the group.
The main thing is the League of Nations.
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The San Marino team played the home game against Liechtenstein, if not from a position of strength, then at least on equal terms. In terms of expected goals, they even outperformed their opponents: 0.56 vs. 0.33 xG. Shot statistics – 8:9 (on target – 3:0). The result of the match was decided by the goal scored at the beginning of the second half by 19-year-old striker Nico Sensoli, a representative of the San Marino Academy. This is his first goal in four games for the national team. Of course, the hosts rejoiced after their success as if they had won the World Cup. Some cried when the final whistle blew. There was some kind of frenzy on the team’s social networks.
Coach Civoli’s name will go down in the history of San Marino football. He previously managed Monza, Regina and Novara. He has been working with the national team since 2023.
Roberto Civoli
Photo: fsgc.sm
It is interesting that the San Marino team achieved its first victory 20 years ago in a friendly match against the same Liechtenstein. These teams drew twice more. Liechtenstein has only three victories. This is what an inconvenient opponent means.
Celebrate San Marino! In honor of this event, Friday can be declared a day off in the country.
