It comes down to this.
With the first leg of the playoffs in the books, Tuesday’s slate of return matches will determine the final four European teams to qualify for next year’s World Cup in Brazil.
The battle between Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic never quite materialized last Friday in Lisbon. Perhaps we’ll see more of a one-on-one battle develop in Sweden on Tuesday.
And what about France? Can they overturn a 2-0 deficit against Ukraine on home soil? Can Greece finish the job against Romania? Will Iceland find a way to beat Croatia in Zagreb?
We’ll soon find out. Here’s a look at the four matches.
Tuesday programming alert: Watch Croatia vs. Iceland (Sportsnet ONE, 2pm ET), Sweden vs. Portugal (all four main Sportsnet channels, 2:30pm ET) and France vs. Ukraine (Sportsnet 360, 2:30pm ET). | Sportsnet World Online | TV schedule
Sweden vs. Portugal
Score the first round to Cristiano Ronaldo in his high-profile heavyweight bout with Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Portuguese demigod of football finally rose to the occasion by scoring the lone goal that sealed victory in Lisbon in the first leg. It was a fantastic finish, fighting off his marker while diving head first to notch home the match-winner, displaying no regard for his own safety with his eyes squarely focused on the ball. Portugal will take their slender lead to Stockholm’s Freinds Arena on Tuesday, and attempt to stifle the scoring threat posed by Ibrahimovic for a second time. Considering, the Swede’s penchant for scoring in the country’s newly built national stadium (10 goals in six matches), the visitors will be hard-pressed to repeat the feat.
Hopefully, round two between CR7 and Ibra will be far more entertaining than what was on display in the first leg. Truth be told, both players laid an egg up until Ronaldo’s match winner in the 82nd minute. Given what is at stake, you would imagine that the pair will produce performances worthy of the epic encounter between two of football’s biggest names. Obviously, there are another 20 players on the pitch that will have a say in the final result, though the spotlight is pointed directly on Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic, as is most of the pressure to make a positive impact and guide their respective nations into the promise land.
France vs. Ukraine
Not only did Ukraine break their seven match winless hex against France, but they also stretched their impressive run of clean sheets to eight successive matches following the 2-0 victory in Kiev last Friday. The result leaves the French in a precarious position of having to win the second leg in Paris by three clear goals, which isn’t exactly an impossible feat considering their immense quality and scoring prowess. However, it’s a tough ask nonetheless for any team. Despite enjoying nearly 60 per cent possession and nine corner kicks, which produced 14 total shots with six hitting the target, France’s big guns failed to secure the ever-so crucial away goal needed to alleviate some of the pressure for the return leg on Tuesday.
Manager Didier Deschamps must preach discipline and composure to his players, after having watched Laurent Koscielny’s pick up a red card for a petulant reaction towards Olexandr Kucher in injury time. The Arsenal defender lashed out in frustration, striking his opponent in the face and will now miss the deciding fixture at the Stade de France. His absence provides a glaring hole in the back four at a time when the French cannot afford to concede. Cooler heads must prevail if France is to avoid elimination. It’s also categorically imperative that their trio of strikers—Olivier Giroud, Loic Remy and Karim Benzema—ripple the mesh, having combined for 22 goals this season at club level.
Croatia vs. Iceland
Weathering the storm is the best way to describe Iceland’s performance on Friday in Reykjavik. To be fair, Hannes Thor Halldorsson is deservedly owed most of the plaudits for keeping a clean sheet, as the Icelandic goalkeeper made a string of key saves in the second half which kept the score level and gave the Nordic islanders a genuine chance heading into Zagreb for the decisive second leg on Tuesday.
It’s worth mentioning that the match itself was fairly even and uneventful in the first 45 minutes, as both teams struggled to create a decent scorning threat. That all changed five minutes after the break with the dismissal of Olafur Ingi Skulason. As if the match-up itself wasn’t enough of a mountain to climb, Iceland somehow managed to withstand Croatia’s relentless wave of attacks for the remaining 40 minutes. Manager Lars Lagerback is warranted a certain amount of praise for keeping his side disciplined and well-organized playing with 10 men. But the inability to register a single shot on target through 90 minutes—on home soil no less—is very concerning. The hostile and boisterous atmosphere at Maksimir Stadium won’t provide any solace for its visitors.
Tuesday programming alert: Watch Slovenia vs. Canada (Sportsnet ONE, noon ET) and England vs. Germany (Sportsnet World, 3pm ET) in international friendlies. | Sportsnet World Online | TV schedule
Romania vs. Greece
Of the four European playoff fixtures being contested last Friday, no one would have envisioned the game in Athens providing the most goals. Greece are notoriously economical on both ends of the pitch, netting more than a solitary goal in only three of their 10 qualifiers, and rather more impressively, conceding in only two of those matches. The Greeks aggressively pressed their Romanian opponents from the opening kickoff with an uncharacteristically attack-minded approach. For the first time—if ever—Greece produced a thoroughly entertaining performance. Romania was clearly caught off guard, and now must overturn a 3-1 defeat in Bucharest on Tuesday.
Kostas Mitroglou is a man on fire, as his impressive brace gave the Greeks an important cushion for the return leg. The Olympiakos striker exhibited his lethal scoring touch and benefited from a slick passing game that was the catalyst towards victory. The Greeks have never possessed a quality finisher in the final third, someone who can be counted on to score the decisive goal when needed. They finally have that threat in Mitroglou. Despite conceding the crucial away goal, Greece holds the advantage heading into the return fixture, as the game plays right into their ultimate strength. Expect manager Fernando Santos to close up shop and force the Romanian’s to try and breach an almost impenetrable defensive formation. All the pressure rests squarely on the hosts’ shoulders, as Greece are 90 minutes away from successive World Cup appearances.