San Marino scores first home goal in six years in 3-1 loss to Kazakhstan
Filippo Berardi scored a second-half consolation for San Marino in Saturday's clash with Kazakhstan to end its long wait for a goal.
Published : Nov 17, 2019 12:31 IST
San Marino scored its first home goal in six years – and its first of any kind since 2017 – in Saturday's 3-1 Euro 2020 qualifying defeat to Kazakhstan.
Placed 209th in the latest FIFA rankings, joint-bottom with Anguilla, San Marino's run without a goal on home soil stretched back 20 matches since a 5-1 loss against Poland in September 2013.
It had also failed to find the net home or away since Mirko Palazzi's consolation goal in a 5-1 reverse at the hands of Azerbaijan 26 months ago, suffering 9-0 defeats to Russia and Belgium and an 8-0 loss to Norway during that streak.
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Those barren goalscoring runs ended in the qualifying clash with Kazakhstan in Serravalle thanks to Filippo Berardi's second-half strike.
The 22-year-old winger, who plies his club trade for Serie C side Vibonese, rounded opposition goalkeeper Dmytro Nepogodov after latching onto a throughball and slotted into an empty net.
San Marino, 3-0 down at the time of the goal, remains bottom of Group I without a point and with a goal difference of -45 from their nine matches.
It has lost 35 competitive games in a row since a 0-0 draw with Estonia in Euro 2016 qualifying five years ago.