James McFadden scored midway in the first half as Scotland surprised the Netherlands 1-0, while Spain, another favorite, needed a late own goal to beat Norway 2-1 in the Euro 2004 playoffs Saturday.
In other games, Latvia upset Turkey 1-0, underdog Wales held Russia to a 0-0 draw in Moscow, and Croatia and Slovenia -- former federal partners in the old Yugoslavia -- played to a 1-1 tie.
The second legs are on Nov. 19. Host Portugal and 10 other countries have already qualified for next summer's tournament.
PHOTO: AFP
"That was just battling, battling, battling," Scotland defender Christian Dailly told Sky Sports. "It was hard. They've got a good side -- we really earned that. We restricted them, we were getting blocks, and we also rode our luck at times."
After a good back-heel by rising star Darren Fletcher, McFadden's shot went off defender Frank de Boer and past Edwin van der Sar in the 22nd minute.
"It wasn't the best finish, but it hit the back of the net, and that's what we're concerned about," McFadden said.
PHOTO: EPA
The Dutch, one of the most talented teams in soccer, immediately pushed forward. Andy van der Meyde shot over the bar in the 26th minute, and de Boer's header was later cleared off the line.
Van der Meyde hit the crossbar in the 64th, and substitute Clarence Seedorf shot wide from the edge of the box in the 73rd.
"It was a great performance, and we played very well," Scotland coach Berti Vogts said. "In the second half, the legs were a little tired, but we got organized."
Dailly received a yellow card and won't be eligible for Wednesday's return leg in Amsterdam. Netherlands defender Jaap Stam is also out after picking up a yellow card.
The loss will put more pressure on Dutch coach Dick Advocaat. Advocaat -- who once coached at Glasgow Rangers -- said he would resign if the Netherlands don't reach next year's competition.
The Netherlands, a semifinalist in the 1998 World Cup and at Euro 2000, failed to qualify for last year's World Cup.
"Defensively, I think we were poor with the way we defended that situation," Advocaat said of the goal. "I think we tried to put pressure on in the second half. I think we could have got a goal and deserved to have done so in the second half."
Advocaat defended his decision to start forwards Ruud van Nistelrooy and Patrick Kluivert. He hinted he wouldn't play the two together because they're the same type of player. Kluivert was ineffective.
"I think [Saturday], the passing to the striker wasn't the best," Advocaat said.
Spain, always filled with some of the world's best players, has underachieved in big tournaments. More disappointment looked likely in Valencia until defender Henning Berg's own goal in the 85th minute. The goal came following a scramble in the box. Against the run of play, Steffen Iversen opened the scoring in the 14th minute, taking advantage of a defensive mistake. Raul Gonzalez's header made it 1-1 in the 20th minute.
Spain piled pressure on the Norwegians, totaling 30 shots. Raul was stopped three times by 'keeper Espen Johnsen, Jose Antonio Reyes shot straight at Johnsen in the first half, and Fernando Torres was wide on a breakaway early in the first half.
In Riga, a minute of silence was held before the game to honor victims of bombings that killed more than 20 people and injured hundreds of others at two synagogues in Istanbul earlier Saturday. The Turkish players wore black ribbons.
Maris Verpakovskis scored the only goal in the 29th minute. Turkey's best chance came when Emre Belozoglu hit the post in the 86th minute -- after teammate Emre Asik was sent off in the 73rd for two yellow cards.
Turkey reached the semifinals of last year's World Cup.
"Our players had tough conditions with the climate," Turkey coach Senol Gunes said, referring to subzero temperatures. "That is why we lost, I think."
Latvia, which regained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, has never advanced to a major tournament. All 9,000 tickets for the game sold out in two hours.
Wales, which hasn't been in a major tournament since the 1958 World Cup, defended well in Moscow. Dmitry Bulykin's long-range shot was inches wide at the far post, and Bulykin missed a half-chance in the 40th minute.
Russia dominated possession in the second half, although two of its best chances were blocked by defender Mark Delaney. The Russians scored 15 goals in four qualifying wins.
"We all knew we had to produce a peak performance," Wales manager Mark Hughes said.
Russia goalie Sergei Ovchinnikov will miss the second leg in Cardiff after receiving a yellow card at halftime.
Wales, missing four injured regulars, finished qualifying with three losses and a draw. Italy took advantage to win Group 9.
"You only get so many chances at this level," Hughes said. "We should have qualified outright, but now we have another opportunity, and we intend to take it."
In Zagreb, Dado Prso gave the home team the lead in the fifth minute, only for Ermin Siljak to equalize in the 22nd. Croatia hit a post and was frustrated by Slovenia 'keeper Mladen Dabanovic.
Croatia and Slovenia have been embroiled in a range of diplomatic disputes. Slovenia recently withdrew its ambassador from Zagreb following a sea border feud.
Ademola Lookman on Thursday scored on his Atletico Madrid debut in a 5-0 rout of Real Betis Balompie that sent Diego Simeone’s team to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. David Hancko, Giuliano Simeone, Antoine Griezmann and Thiago Almada also scored for Atletico as they advanced to the last four for the third straight season. Atletico are trying to reach their first Copa final since winning the competition in 2012-2013. Hancko opened the scoring for the visitors in the 12th minute and Giuliano Simeone added to the lead in the 30th, before Lookman got his first goal for Atletico on a fast
GUNNING FOR A WIN: The victory sending Arsenal to the final for the first time in six years was cathartic for a team who had lost their previous four semi-finals Arsenal on Tuesday reached the League Cup final for the first time in eight years as Kai Havertz sealed a 1-0 win against Chelsea in the semi-final second leg. Mikel Arteta’s side had put themselves in pole position in the first leg and Havertz came off the bench to finish the 4-2 aggregate victory in the closing moments at the Emirates Stadium. It was a cathartic triumph for the Gunners, who had lost their previous four semi-finals in last year’s UEFA Champions League and League Cup, the 2022 League Cup and the 2021 UEFA Europa League. In their first final for six years,
SUPERSTAR DELIVERS: Victor Wembanyama scored 29 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to propel the Spurs to a 135-123 victory over the Dallas Mavericks The Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday shook off the early exit of injured star Luka Doncic, rallying without him in the second half for a 119-115 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. Austin Reaves, again coming off the bench in his second game back from a 19-game injury absence, scored 13 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, drilling a pair of back-to-back three-pointers to give the Lakers their first lead of the game early in the final frame. “Losing Luka, you know nothing’s going to be easy after that because he does so much for us, but we bonded together,” said
France head coach Fabien Galthie on Thursday lauded his team’s attacking performance after their dazzling 36-14 victory over Ireland in their Six Nations opener. A brace of tries from Louis Bielley-Biarrey and one from mercurial flyhalf Matthieu Jalibert helped France storm into a 29-0 lead before taking their foot off the gas and allowing Ireland back into the match, before winger Theo Attissogbe put some gloss on the victory late on. “In an attacking sense, with the ball, the team played with great accuracy,” Galthie said. “It was one of the most accurate attacking performances in a long time, despite the weather
RSS