In light of UEFA footballing minnows Andorra, Gibraltar,
Malta and San Marino all taking on much higher-ranked opponents
Portugal, Belgium, England and Northern Ireland respectively this
international break, that got Coral writers thinking.
Goals galore are expected in each of those fixtures, so we find out some of the biggest scorelines in the history of World Cup and Euro qualifying from European nations.
Ahead of Euro 1988, the Three Lions battered the Turkish outfit, thanks to a hat-trick from Gary Lineker and a brace from John Barnes, while Bryan Robson, Peter Beardsley and Neil Webb also chipped in.
While they failed to qualify, they did smash the island nation 8-0, with defender and now-pundit Mark Lawrenson bagging a brace.
Raul hit four, while Fernando Hierro converted from the spot.
Luther Blissett’s hat-trick helped the hosts to the 9-0 win, and the Three Lions are 33/1 to beat Malta by that same scoreline on October 8th.
Lukas Podolski bagged four, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Miroslav Klose and Thomas Hitzlsperger all got braces, and Michael Ballack, Manuel Friedrich and Bernd Schneider got one apiece too in this 2006 qualifier.
Four goals each from forwards Santillana and Hipolito Rincon helped La Roja on their way to firing 12 in, though at one stage it seemed unlikely as Silvio Demanuele got a 24th-minute equaliser.
Robin van Persie’s quadruple, Wesley Sneijder and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar’s braces and strikes from Dirk Kuyt, Johnny Heitinga and Georginio Wijnaldum gave Clockwork Orange their greatest ever victory in terms of goals scored.
Youri Djorkaeff and Frank Leboeuf managed two goals apiece, while Zinedine Zidane, Marcel Desailly, Vincent Guerin, Reynald Pedros, Christophe Dugarry and Christophe Cocard all scored too.
Goals galore are expected in each of those fixtures, so we find out some of the biggest scorelines in the history of World Cup and Euro qualifying from European nations.
England 8-0 Turkey (1987)
We start off with England and, although their 8-0 win is not the biggest scoreline on the list, it was against one of the most high profile – Turkey.Ahead of Euro 1988, the Three Lions battered the Turkish outfit, thanks to a hat-trick from Gary Lineker and a brace from John Barnes, while Bryan Robson, Peter Beardsley and Neil Webb also chipped in.
Spain 8-0 Liechtenstein (2016)
Most recently, Spain hammered tiny territory Liechtenstein 8-0 too this current World Cup 2018 qualifying campaign, thanks to braces from Diego Costa, David Silva and Alvaro Morata.Republic of Ireland 8-0 Malta (1983)
The Boys in Green’s biggest ever win came in qualifying for the 1984 European Championship, against former British oversees territory Malta, in a group involving Spain and the Netherlands.While they failed to qualify, they did smash the island nation 8-0, with defender and now-pundit Mark Lawrenson bagging a brace.
Spain 9-0 Austria (1999)
La Roja predictably feature on this list a few times, but their 9-0 triumph over Austria in Euro 2000 qualifying is perhaps the most impressive.Raul hit four, while Fernando Hierro converted from the spot.
England 9-0 Luxembourg (1982)
England actually failed to qualify for Euro 1984, but at least gave fans something to cheer about by giving Luxembourg a thrashing at Wembley.Luther Blissett’s hat-trick helped the hosts to the 9-0 win, and the Three Lions are 33/1 to beat Malta by that same scoreline on October 8th.
San Marino 0-13 Germany (2006)
To complete the list, Germany’s ridiculous 13-0 scoreline in San Marino is the biggest of them all, and came against usual whipping boys San Marino.Lukas Podolski bagged four, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Miroslav Klose and Thomas Hitzlsperger all got braces, and Michael Ballack, Manuel Friedrich and Bernd Schneider got one apiece too in this 2006 qualifier.
Spain 12-1 Malta (1983)
Spain again, this time against Malta, who’ve had their fair share of thrashings over the years.Four goals each from forwards Santillana and Hipolito Rincon helped La Roja on their way to firing 12 in, though at one stage it seemed unlikely as Silvio Demanuele got a 24th-minute equaliser.
Netherlands 11-0 San Marino (2011)
It might be a surprise that the famed attacking side Netherlands only feature on this list once, but their 11-0 triumph over San Marino in Euro 2012 qualifying puts them in our top three biggest scorelines.Robin van Persie’s quadruple, Wesley Sneijder and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar’s braces and strikes from Dirk Kuyt, Johnny Heitinga and Georginio Wijnaldum gave Clockwork Orange their greatest ever victory in terms of goals scored.
France 10-0 Azerbaijan (1995)
Ahead of the memorable Euro 96 tournament in England, bitter rivals France were under pressure to qualify for the tournament across the Channel, but their 10-0 walloping of Azerbaijan certainly helped them on their way.Youri Djorkaeff and Frank Leboeuf managed two goals apiece, while Zinedine Zidane, Marcel Desailly, Vincent Guerin, Reynald Pedros, Christophe Dugarry and Christophe Cocard all scored too.