Preview: Greece pushing for a direct qualification to World Cup 2014
Greece are currently placed second in Group G, trailing leaders Bosnia-Herzegovina on goal difference. However the group leaders boast a massive goal difference of 20 compared to Greece’s five which clearly implies that Fernando Santos’ men will have to win both their subsequent matches and hope that Bosnia-Herzegovina drop points in their next two fixtures.
However it is unlikely that the Dragons would be dropping any points taking into account their next two opponents which are Liechtenstein and Lithuania, with Bosnia having thrashed the former 8-1 last month and the latter 3-0 last year.
Greece on the other hand have mathematically secured a place for themselves for the play offs at least. Greece on 19 points lead third placed Slovakia by seven points, which means that even if they lose both their matches and Slovakia win both of theirs, Ján Kozák’s men will not be able to do enough to qualify for the illustrious tournament.
In their last outing, Greece scored a hard fought victory against Latvia after going down in the 41st minute courtesy of a Aleksandrs Cauna penalty. But Greece responded valiantly and second half goals from Nikos Spiropoulos and Theofanis Gekas ensured that the Galanolefki remained the second best team in the group.
Greece however will have to be at their level best against a Slovakia side who can consider themselves unlucky not being able to participate in the biggest football competition.
The Slovakians have at their helm some of the finest talents in the world of football including Napoli star Marek Hamsik who has been the outstanding performer for his club Napoli this season, their captain Martin Skrtel who has successfully reclaimed his starting spot at Liverpool and also Olympiacos star Vladimír Weiss who has impressed every time he has taken the field.
Last time the two sides met back in October last year, a solitary goal from Dimitris Salpingidis was enough to seal the victory for Fernando Santos’ side.
Where to watch the match – live stream, start time, TV channels, Live scores
Watch Greece vs Slovakia live on Friday, October 11, 2013:
In USA at 14:45 ET on ESPN3
Internationally at 18:45 GMT on: Qualifiers 2014 App (Live streaming online)
Fans in other parts of the world can watch the match live on their local channels as specified by LiveSoccerTV. Those in Greece can watch the match live on MEGA Channel.
For complete details of match listings and live scores, visit the Greece vs Slovakia match page.
