NOTTINGHAM, England, October 7, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
The quest for Euro 2016 qualification is well underway with the second and third games of each qualification group due to be played over the coming two weeks. Sports Direct assesses the chances of the United Kingdom's nations in the group stages, during October 2014's international break.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121003/567209 )
England made a good start to the campaign with a 2-0 win over Switzerland, courtesy of two Danny Welbeck goals. With Daniel Sturridge ruled out, Welbeck will be expected to lead the line and fire England to victory against opponents Estonia and San Marino. Anything less than 6 points from these two games will be viewed as a disappointment, so it's crucial that England do not get complacent.
Wales came from behind to defeat Andorra in their first game, Gareth Bale scoring both goals. The Welsh face tougher opposition in their next two games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Cyprus. Bosnia put on a good show in the World Cup and they will be looking to avenge their loss against Cyprus in the first game. If Wales can survive without Aaron Ramsey and get Gareth Bale firing on all cylinders, they are in with a strong chance of picking up at least four points.
Scotland will want to take the positives from their opening group game defeat to World Cup winners Germany, ahead of their games against Poland and Georgia. The Scots put in a strong display and eventually found the Germans too much to handle, but if they can replicate the same type of passion and spirit, they have a great chance of overturning Georgia and getting a draw from Poland.
Northern Ireland claimed an excellent away win in their first game against Hungary by coming from behind to score twice in the last ten minutes. They will feel confident going into their next two games against Faroe Islands and Greece, both of whom lost their first fixture. The Northern Irish have yet to progress through the group stages, but they will feel this year is a great opportunity to do so. Four points has to be a minimum aim from their next two games.
There are reasons to be positive for the home nations during this Euro 2016 campaign and Sports Direct are showing their support by supplying the UK fans with their nation's merchandise at http://www.sportsdirect.com.
To keep up to date with the latest football products and official merchandise, visit http://www.sportsdirect.com/football and be sure to check out their Facebook http://www.facebook.com/SportsDirectUK and Twitter pages (@SportsDirectUK).
For all media enquiries please contact tom.james@sportsdirect.com or +44-08703339413
Share this article