THE world of football held its breath in anticipation of tonight’s blockbuster international clash as San Marino bid to end their 20-year wait for a win.
However, the microstate landlocked in north-eastern Italy will have to go on waiting after it missed a golden chance to earn a golden win.
San Marino is ranked as the worst national team by Fifa rankings, having lost 192 of the 201 games it had contested before tonight.
It is the fifth-smallest country in the world with a land mass of 61km squared – roughly half the size of Manchester – and a population of just 33,000.
Yet goals in each of their last three games – including against Denmark, who until recently were ranked inside the top 20 nations in the world – appeared to shown an upturn in their fortunes.
And a match against Caribbean side Saint Kitts and Nevis – ranked 63 places above San Marino at 210th in Fifa’s standings – represented a great chance to finally get a win on the board after 20 years.
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Indeed, San Marino were sensationally the bookies favourites to win the match in Serravalle.
Things started off well when Filippo Berardi scored a penalty after 21 minutes to put the hosts 1-0 ahead.
It led to one fan, who goes by “San Marino fan account” on social media and started a campaign to get Jose Mourinho to manage the nation, to say: “BERARDI YOU SEXY SEXY SUN OF A BEACH.”
However, the jubilation would not last for long as Tyquan Terrell levelled the scoring in the 31st minute.
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Things then got worse on the stroke of half-time as Andre Burley netted a second for the visitors after the home side failed to clear their lines from a corner.
Any hope of San Marino rallying to mount a comeback was crushed shortly after the break when Harry Panayiotou netted a third in the 49th minute.
The match would go on to end 3-1, meaning San Marino are now without a win in 137 games.
And it means Liechtenstein and Anguilla both breathed a sigh of relief that their own joint record of 35 games without a win would not become the new holder.
Liechtenstein are the one team San Marino managed to beat in their history, with a 1-0 win back in 2004 courtesy of a goal from Andy Selva, the nation’s all-time leading goalscorer with eight goals.
San Marino captain Matteo Vitaioli made his debut some 17 years ago but is yet to experience a win.
However, all is not lost.
The match is being repeated on Sunday, meaning Vitaioli and Co will have a chance to make amends.
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As quoted by the BBC ahead of the first game in the double-header about the possibility of a win, the 34-year-old said: “It would mean to be part of the history of my home country’s national team, so it is the ultimate objective.
“It represents an opportunity to leave a sign, something that cannot be lost. It would be something that in 2050 and beyond would be remembered because there have been so few victories.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
