By Andrew Warshaw in Warsaw
February 7 – Ireland never got their dream revenge tie against France to make amends for Thierry Henry’s cheating handball.
And England ended up getting Wales rather a far more keenly anticipated clash with Scotland.
In fact to be honest there were not many stand-out ties at the qualifying draw for the 2012 European Championships, starting in September.
Fabio Capello may have said all the right things by describing his team’s fixtures with Switzerland, Bulgaria and Montenegro - as well as the Welsh - as tough but at best awkward would have been a more apt description.
Switzerland have certainly improved in recent years and, like England, topped their group for the 2010 World Cup.
But as for the others, Bulgaria have been on the slide ever since the euphoric days of Hristo Stoichkov while Wales have not qualified for anything for over half a century.
Inevitably Capello was very much the focus of attention immediately after the draw at the cavernous wedding cake-style Palace of Culture and Science, the tallest and most prized building in Warsaw.
Scribes and cameramen jostled for position but if the throng around Capello were seeking more juicy revelations about the manager’s reasons for sacking John Terry as skipper, they were left sorely disappointed.
Football only please, said Capello in his usual matter of fact, heavily accented English.
In fact 2012 only.
England’s group hardly set the world alight but for a brief moment it might well have been very different.
As proceedings unfolded, England were still to be drawn with only three positions left to fill.
A tantalising meeting with the Scots was still on the cards, only for legendary Poland international Zbigniew Boniek send England to Cardiff instead of Glasgow.
“Wales will be my first derby,” said Capello.
“I spoke with John Toshack on the flight over.
He told me the average age is 22 and he had some really good young players.
“It will be interesting – for me and England.”
Interesting but hardly fearsome.
Likewise Montenegro who have won only once in recent World Cup qualifiers and finished bottom of their group for 2010.
Even with Dimitar Berbatov, Bulgaria never looked like reaching South Africa while Capello was granted another stroke of fortune by being placed in one of the groups of five meaning fewer dates and fewer gruelling trips.
So were Scotland, to the delight of manager Craig Levein who clearly found the whole experience a trifle nerve-wracking by referring more than once to group opponents Spain as “world champions” but who nevertheless cannot wait for the European champions to visit Hampden.
“Spain will capture the Scottish people’s imagination,” said Levein.
“There’s an opportunity to pick up points against all the teams in the group.”
For all his trepidation, Levein certainly looked the part at what was his most prestigious appearance since being appointed as George Burley’s successor.
“It’s all a bit mind-blowing, the scale of the whole thing,” he said.
“I got butterflies just walking into the building.”
Significantly, two major coaches never showed up - France’s Raymond Domenech for the simple reason he will not be in charge after the World Cup and, more surprisingly, Italy’s Marcello Lippi who gave no reason at all other than that he preferred to watch Serie A’s elite.
Russia’s Guus Hiddink, meanwhile, spoke for most fans when he said how saddened he was that UEFA had been forced to keep apart former Soviet states.
European soccer’s governing body decided beforehand that neighbours Russia and Georgia would be separated if they were drawn in the same group, as would Azerbaijan and Armenia.
UEFA had to enforce their ruling and move Armenia to Group B after they were first drawn alongside Azerbaijan.
“I’m a sportsman and it’s always a pity when countries are separated for non-sporting reasons,” said Hiddink.
“When I worked in South Korea, they desperately wanted to be in North Korea’s group.
“Sometimes sport can help.”
Contact the writer of this story at zib.l1734840545labto1734840545ofdlr1734840545owedi1734840545sni@w1734840545ahsra1734840545w.wer1734840545dna1734840545
Euro 2012 qualifying draw
Group A: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Belgium, Austria, Turkey, Germany
Group B: Andorra, Armenia, Macedonia, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Russia
Group C: Faroe Islands, Estonia, Slovenia, Northern Ireland, Serbia, Italy
Group D: Luxembourg, Albania, Belarus, Bosnia, Romania, France
Group E: San Marino, Moldova, Hungary, Finland, Sweden, Netherlands
Group F: Malta, Georgia, Latvia, Israel, Greece, Croatia
Group G: Montenegro, Wales, Bulgaria, Switzerland, England
Group H: Iceland, Cyprus, Norway, Denmark, Portugal
Group I: Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Scotland, Czech Republic, Spain
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