Armenians made to work
Saturday, 26 March 2005
[1] A second-half goal from Romik Khachatryan was enough to seal victory for Armenia in the basement encounter with Andorra in FIFA World Cup qualifying Group 1.
Good heart
[2] It was Armenia's first win in the group and, after taking a point from their last match with Romania, Bernard Casoni's men will travel to the Netherlands for their next test on Wednesday night in great heart having overtaken Andorra on head-to-head record to go sixth. The performance at the Republican stadium in Yerevan was particularly impressive as Armenia were missing captain Harutyun Vardanyan and top-scorer Artur Petrosyan through injury.
Expected goal
[3] It was all Armenia in the first half and it was no surprise when they took a 32nd-minute lead as FC Stal Alchevsk forward Ara Hakobyan beat Andorra goalkeeper Koldo Alvarez. The home side then missed a good chance to extend their lead nine minutes later as midfield player Artavadz Karamyan's header just shaved the post. Andorra had only managed a single shot on target in the first period so it came as something of a shock when they levelled the score in the 57th minute.
Long-range winner
[4] Justo Ruiz's powerful free kick hit the post and bounced back to create havoc in the home penalty area. Fernando Silva was alert to the opportunity and was first to reach the ball, heading past keeper Roman Berezovsky. But Armenia were not to be denied and OFI Crete FC midfield player Khachatryan scored the winner with a spectacular long-range drive in the 73rd minute. Andorra are next in action on Wednesday when they play host to the Czech Republic.
Armenia's Artavazd Karamyan battles with Andorra's Oscar Sonejee Masand