U-21 European Qualifier: Greece 1-1 England: Three Lions Escape Tripoli With A Point

Despite taking an early lead through Daniel Sturridge, England were on the back foot for much of the night in Tripoli as Sotiris Ninis inspired a Greek resurgence, and very nearly a win for Nikos Nioplias’ side.

With top spot on the line in Group 9, Greece retained their grip on pole position as the gap between the two teams holds at three points, but the Greeks will rue their missed chances in a game that should have certainly been a victory for the home side.

It took England just five minutes to open the scoring with Daniel Sturridge finding the back of the net as he tapped in a pass from Danny Rose after the latter weaved through three Greek defenders to free up space.

Putting a rude awakening behind them, Greece began to dictate the match, with the likes of Konstantinos Mitroglou troubling the English defenders, but to no early avail on the scoreboard.

In fact, Greece didn’t come close to netting an equaliser until Panathinaikos prospect Sotiris Ninis whizzed an effort just wide of Scott Loach’s goal on 24 minutes.

At the other end, England looked to showcase its efficiency in attack yet again, but an injury had forced manager Stuart Pearce to replace Sturridge with Danny Welbeck.

The substitute, a product of Manchester United’s youth academy, immediately forced the Greek defense to be cautious as he pressured the likes of Michalis Boukouvalas and Kyriakos Papadopoulos – eventually seeing the duo concede a throw-in.

Off the throw-in, Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere nearly extended his side’s lead even further as he released a swift effort from the edge of the box as Greece ‘keeper Konstantinos Lambrou could only watch the effort curl just wide of the upright.

Realising the need to take advantage of their opportunities, Greece finally notched an equaliser as Ninis levelled the score at 1-1 five minutes before the interval. The 19-year-old’s effort looked to be a routine stop for Loach, but a deflection fooled the English ‘keeper as it trickled into the goal.

Poised to complete the come-back in the second half, Greece returned with an added intensity to their play, but while the first-half featured a fast-paced tempo with plenty of goal-mouth action, the start to the second frame was a much calmer introduction.

The first chance after the restart didn’t come until just before the hour mark, AEK youngster Panagiotis Tachtsidis trying his chances from just outside the box but the effort was labelled as optimistic when it sailed over the bar.

Two minutes later, Greece continued to show its potency, this time Mitroglou breaking away alone on Loach, but the Olympiakos man failed to make the most of the chance as he fired straight at the England shot-stopper.

Schalke’s Vasilis Pliatsikas looked to leave his mark on the game soon after Mitroglou’s blown effort, but his driven effort lacked the correct accuracy as it sailed over the bar.

A similar effort for England captain Fabrice Muamba unravelled on 73 minutes, but the score remained level as the Bolton Wanderers man also fired his effort up and over.

Greece resumed their hunt for a goal minutes later with Mitroglou again looking to be the hero as he dangled past the English defense. Opting to shoot from an awkward angle on the left side, Mitroglou nearly netted his team-leading third goal of the qualifying campaign as he lashed his effort just inches over the crossbar.

Ninis then looked to capture his second goal of the night, and after slipping past Muamba and Michael Mancienne with some clever footwork, he looked certain to notch a memorable goal but Loach managed to parry the 86 minute effort.

While Ninis continued to lead the Greek attack, Mitroglou inched closer and closer to deciding the match, but again wasted a glorious chance on 88 minutes. Weaving past his marker and around Loach, Mitroglou looked to be a shoe-in to net the match-winner but he tapped his effort into the side-netting – leaving the Greek bench to rue yet another chance to grab maximum points.

Both teams remain undefeated in their campaign to reach the 2011 UEFA U-21 Championships in Denmark, Greece lead the group after three games with seven points, England are three adrift with one match in hand.

Greece 1-1 England
0-1 Sturridge 5'
1-1 Ninis 40'

Greece (4-4-2): Lambrou, Argyropoulos, Boukouvalas, K. Papadopoulos, Siovas, Pliatsikas, Ninis, Dimoutsos (77’ Siakkas), Mitroglou (90’ + 1’ Pavlis), Tachtsidis (56’ Rizogiannis), Koutsianikoulis.

England (4-3-3): Loach, Naughton, Gibbs, Muamba, Tomkins, Mancienne, Wilshere, Rodwell (56’ Addison), Sturridge (28’ Welbeck; 75’ Sears), Rose, Cleverley.

Yellow Cards: Pliatsikas 61', Siakkas 89' - Rose 89'.

Referee: Mauro Bergonzi (Italy)

Venue: Asteras Tripolis Stadium, Tripoli, Arcadia, Greece

Peter Katsiris, Goal.com