Hungary Defeats Finland in Euro 2016 Qualifier

Zoltán Gera scored the decisive goal in Budapest six minutes from time as the hosts claimed a second successive victory in qualifying Group F, uefa.com reports.

Zoltán Gera scored six minutes from time as Hungary posted a second successive victory in UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying Group F, defeating Finland 1-0 in Budapest.

The hosts, who narrowly overcame the Faroe Islands on matchday three, earned their first win at home in the group following a late clincher from Gera. The No10 got above two defenders to meet substitute Gergő Lovrencsics’s 84th-minute right-wing cross with a close-range header.

Hungary had the first effort of the game after a scrappy opening but captain Balázs Dzsudzsák failed to hit the target with a tame shot across the face of goal after a fine dribble. The Eagle-Owls were looking to improve on their showing last time out – a defeat by Romania in Helsinki – and succeeded in restricting Hungary to just two attempts in the first 30 minutes.

Uefa.com said, Mixu Paatelainen’s men fashioned a couple of decent opportunities in the space of three minutes as they began to dominate possession. Perparim Hetemaj’s cross was nodded wide by Teemu Pukki before the latter failed to trouble home custodian Gábor Király from distance with his 33rd-minute drive. Four minutes later, Jarkko Hurme’s strike almost found the bottom corner.

Indeed, Finland ended the first period strongly and looked far more likely to find the opener in Budapest. Pál Dárdai’s team survived a late scare as Jere Uronen unleashed a fierce attempt that produced a smart one-handed stop from Király – onto the post – two minutes before the interval.

Read more on uefa.com 

Photo: MTI – Zsolt Szigetvary

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters