LONDON: With Rodrigo Moreno’s equaliser in stoppage time, Spain earned the point they needed against Sweden to qualify for Euro 2020 on Tuesday, while the Republic of Ireland missed their chance to seal a spot in next year’s tournament by losing to Switzerland.

Already qualified Italy routed Liechtenstein 5-0 for a record-equaling ninth straight win.

After conceding a late equaliser against Norway on Saturday to miss an opportunity to qualify in advance, Spain salvaged a 1-1 draw in their visit to Sweden with a goal by Rodrigo two minutes into injury time at Friends Arena.

“If we don’t win every match people will start saying that we are not playing well, but things don’t always go your way in football,” Rodrigo said.

“Qualification is a must for a team like Spain but achieving it still has value. It releases the pressure and gives us time to work. The important thing is that we have qualified. Now we have time to try to improve.”

Coach Robert Moreno dedicated the spot at Euro 2020 to former Spain manager Luis Enrique, who resigned in June to be with his ill daughter.

Spain are top of Group ‘F’ on 20 points. They are five ahead of Sweden and six above Romania, who missed the chance to take second spot when Norway’s Alexander Sorloth snatched a late 1-1 draw in Bucharest. The Norwegians stayed alive after their second consecutive last-gasp draw. Romania and Sweden will meet in the next round.

However it was a far from vintage display from Spain, who started brightly but faded as the match wore on against the lively hosts, who were distraught after missing out on a famous victory right at the death.

A celebratory night was tempered slightly by the loss of goalkeeper David de Gea to a thigh injury in the second half, although that will worry his club Manchester United more ahead their meeting with Premier League leaders Liverpool this weekend.

Marcus Berg scored early in the second half to give Sweden the lead, but Rodrigo’s late goal from close range kept Spain from losing their first qualifying match for either the European Championship or the World Cup since 2014. It also extended Spain’s record streak of scoring at least a goal to 38 consecutive matches.

Spain was without captain Sergio Ramos because of a yellow-card suspension. The central defender on Saturday played his 168th match with the national team, surpassing the record previously set by Iker Casillas.

BEATEN IRELAND FORCED TO WAIT

A win would have secured Ireland a berth at Euro 2020, but a 2-0 loss to Switzerland means they will need to beat Denmark in their final match to guarantee a place in next year’s tournament.

Haris Seferovic’s early strike and Shane Duffy’s late own goal, meanwhile, kept Switzerland’s hopes of automatic qualification alive. Ireland played a man down from the 76th as captain Seamus Coleman was shown a second yellow card for a handball.

The win in Geneva means the Swiss are just a point behind group leaders Ireland and Denmark with two matches remaining in their campaign, compared to just the one for the Irish, who host the Danes on November 18.

“It’s a cup final. Beat Denmark to reach Euro 2020. I would have taken that at the start and I’ll take it now,” said the Republic’s coach Mick McCarthy.

The Swiss, who also have the better of the head-to-head record with the Irish as the two teams drew 1-1 in September, take on group minnows Georgia and Gibraltar in their final two games.

“The result doesn’t mean a lot in the group, we still need to get results in our next two games. If we get the points we need against Georgia and Gibraltar we can turn our attentions to Euro 2020,” said Switzerland coach Vladimir Petkovic.

Finland inched closer to qualifying for their first ever European Championships after Teemu Pukki took his qualifying tally to seven in eight matches with a double that helped Finland sweep aside Armenia 3-0 in Turku.

Fredrik Jensen gave the Finns a 31st-minute lead. Norwich City striker Pukki then scored just after the hour and got his second two minutes from the end with a neat dinked finish.

Markku Kanerva’s side stay nine points behind Group ‘J’ winners Italy, who maintained their 100 percent record with an eighth straight win, 5-0 against Liechtenstein. Andrea Belotti scored twice while Federico Bernardeschi, Alessio Romagnoli and Stephan El Shaarawy added a goal apiece.

Finland need a win over rock-bottom Liechtenstein to qualify for their first major tournament after fourth-placed Bosnia & Herzegovina lost 2-1 in Greece with an 88th-minute own goal from Adnan Kovacevic.

Israel kept their hopes of qualifying from Group ‘G’ alive after seeing off Latvia 3-1 as Eran Zahavi scored his 11th goal of the qualifying campaign.

Andi Herzog’s side are level on 11 points with North Macedonia and Slovenia and five behind second-place Austria, meaning they still have a chance with two games remaining.

Published in Dawn, October 17th, 2019