Defenders spare Finnish blushes against Azerbaijan

2-1 scoreline keeps wafer-thin hopes of qualification alive

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Finland came from behind with two scrappy late goals to grab an away win against Azerbaijan in their seventh World Cup 2010 qualifying match, and this was one of those occasions where it was more important to be grateful for a positive scoreline than to worry about how it was achieved.
      The Finns had painful memories of visiting Azerbaijan: they lost 1-0 in Baku two years ago, and that defeat (their only one on the road) seriously dented their chances of qualifying for Euro 2008.
      For quite some time on Saturday, the pattern seemed to be repeating itself.
     
In front of a noisy sell-out crowd in the southern city of Lankaran, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, the Finns had a torrid time - and it was not simply because of the heat.
      They went behind just after the interval to a strike from Elvin Mammadov, the first goal scored by the Azeris in this World Cup qualifying campaign.
      For the next quarter of an hour, there was little doubt which was the better side, and it was not Finland.
      However, in the last twenty minutes of the match the visitors started to exert more pressure, and a couple of good chances went begging before Hannu Tihinen, wearing the captain's armband for the first time in a qualifying match, brought the scores level with the faintest of glancing headers following a cross from Jari Litmanen.
     
Since the Finnish forwards had been getting nowhere fast for most of the game, it was perhaps only fitting that both of the visitors' goals came from central defenders: the winner was scrambled over the line in a goalmouth melée after a corner four minutes from the end of normal time by Petri Pasanen, who was standing in for regular captain Sami Hyypiä, sidelined with flu.
      It was not the prettiest of victories by a long chalk, and Azerbaijan are hardly a huge scalp, but the three points for a win that briefly looked very unlikely will keep alive the wafer-thin hopes that Finnish fans still have of the side's being able to qualify from their very tough group.
     
Finland have 13 points from seven games, and remain five points adrift of Russia, who disposed of Liechtenstein 3-0 in Saturday's other game.
      The Finns will be hoping for a huge favour from Wales, who host Russia on Wednesday.
      If the Welsh can get a result, and if Finland do the expected and dispose of Liechtenstein, coach Stuart Baxter's charges would still have something to play for going into the last two matches in October, when the Finns meet Wales in Helsinki and then travel to Germany - the group leaders and probable winners - for their last game.
     
Wednesday's fixture against Liechtenstein should at least be played in front of a less fanatical crowd than that in Lankaran, and the Finns will probably have captain Hyypiä back on duty, although there are injury doubts about Teemu Tainio and Daniel Sjölund. Liechtenstein are bottom of the table, with just one point from their seven games so far, and a goal difference of 1-18. Like Azerbaijan, they have scored their only goal of the campaign against Finland. The Finns emerged somewhat shaky 2-1 winners in Helsinki in June.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Finland 0 Russia 3 - "Déjà vu all over again" (11.6.2009)

Links:
  FIFA World Cup Qualification, Europe Group 4

Helsingin Sanomat