Euro 2012 Qualification Review: Group C
Well that was pretty easy for Italy, wasn't it? Ten matches, two goals scored per match on average, two goals conceded in total, enough for 26 points and a ten-point lead at the top of Group C. Despite the debacle at South Africa last summer, Italy still boast an extremely strong team and will probably give a good showing of themselves in Poland/Ukraine this summer.
Second place brought us a real surprise as Serbia found themselves pipped by tiny Estonia, perhaps in part due to the 3-0 loss they were punished with in Italy after their fans ran riot. That’s not to take anything away from Estonia, however - they managed to earn wins against every team in the group save Italy, including a key 3-1 victory in Belgrade that in retrospect was the major result in the group.
There were interesting stories in slots 4-6, with Slovenia ensuring Serbia wouldn’t take second place and a playoff spot thanks to a second-half penalty save to earn a 1-0 win in the final matchday, while the Faroe Islands managed to notch a rare international win by beating... Estonia, weirdly. What a strange little group this was.
