By Igor Leshin
Georgy Kondratiev’s squad were on form for the first half, clearly fulfilling their coach’s instructions. They were reliable in defence, preventing French attacker Franck Ribйry from scoring, and even managed several dangerous attacks — thanks to Alexander Hleb, Timofey Kalachev and Anton Putilo. One corner kick led to central defender Yegor Filipenko sending the ball into Hugo Lloris’ net.
In the second half, the French took the initiative, leading to the score being equalised by Franck Ribйry, following the award of a penalty kick. Belarus, however, scored ten minutes later: Kalachev netted the ball from a distance, bringing the score to 2:1.
This was the last goal for Belarus, as the team seemed to lose concentration and conceded three goals, some due to goalie Sergey Veremko’s mistakes.
After the game, Mr. Kondratiev noted that he was pleased with aspects of his team’s play, but that ridiculous defence mistakes in the second half had let down the side. He stressed that captain Sergey Veremko did not play his best game and nor did the goalkeeper. Belarus will play its final game in this qualifying round on October 11th: an away match in Spain.
