Switzerland 0 Northern Ireland 0 (Switzerland win 1-0 on aggregate)
The wait goes on for Northern Ireland after they were held to a goalless draw in Basel against a Switzerland side that take their place in next year’s World Cup in Russia.
It was always going to be a tough ask for the Irish against a Swiss side ranked 11th in the world - the highest of all the European qualifying nations - but Michael O’Neill’s side never stopped fighting and almost took the tie into extra-time.
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Jonny Evans’ header deep into stoppage time looked to be goal-bound but Ricardo Rodriguez managed to hook the ball clear.
That it was Rodriguez who popped up to play the hero made it all the more bitter for Northern Ireland, who were beaten 1-0 in Thursday’s first-leg by his controversial penalty after Corry Evans was adjudged to have handled the ball.
That decision still rankled with O’Neill who, when asked for his reaction to the goalless draw, replied: “Ultimately we’ve gone out to a poor [refereeing] decision in the first leg… if it wasn’t for the penalty we’d still be playing extra time now. They players will be remembered for the performance tonight. It’s a very sore way to lose.”
As for the performance in Basel, which earned his side a standing ovation from both sets of supporters, O’Neill said: “Our performance and reaction was fabulous. We were the better team. We had to ride our luck at times but we were pushing until the 94th minute. The players are devastated but I couldn’t be any prouder.”
The other tie to be decided last night also failed to produce a goal as Croatia defended with ease their 4-1 victory against Greece from Thursday’s first leg in Zagreb.
With two of the ties decided, there are two still to play with the Republic of Ireland still very much in the hunt for their first World Cup appearance since 2002 following Saturday night’s goalless draw away in Denmark. They host the Danes in the return leg in Dublin tomorrow, while this evening witnesses one of the most important matches in the history of Italian football.
The last and only time that Italy have failed to qualify for a World Cup was 1958 (they didn’t appear in the inaugural 1930 tournament but there was no qualification that year), but the Azzuri are in serious trouble going into tonight's second leg against Sweden.
A 1-0 defeat in Friday’s first leg means that the four-time winners need something special tonight in Milan, and that’s a tall order given that they have scored just three goals in their previous five World Cup qualifiers.
“Italy looked like a scared team that was playing for a 0-0 draw,” said Andrea Pirlo at the weekend, who added that it’s up to coach Gian Piero Ventura to inspire the squad ahead of tonight’s crucial encounter.
“It will be tough for Ventura to find the right words to say to the group. There will be two very intense days, full of pressure and the coach must have in mind the line-up that he is going to field.”
