Minnows make it on major league stage

London:

Liechtenstein is on a roll. Andorra has finally won a game. And make no mistake, Albania looks like a threat. Four rounds into 2006 World Cup qualifying, one thing is certain: European soccer is more and more unpredictable. A tiny Alpine principality of just 33,000, which only started playing international tournaments in 1994, Liechtenstein stunned Portugal with a 2-2 draw last weekend. On Wednesday came a 4-0 upset of Luxembourg, the country's first away win since a soccer federation was established there 70 years ago. New coach Martin Andermatt, a Swiss who led SSV Ulm and Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Bundesliga, has instilled discipline and order in the squad that contains local amateurs and professionals playing in neighboring Switzerland. The result is four points from four World Cup qualifiers. Another principality locked between two big neighbours, Andorra yesterday recorded its first-ever win, beating Macedonia - which, in turn, held mighty Holland to a 2-2 draw five days earlier. The 1-0 loss prompted Macedonia coach Dragan Kanatlarovski to offer his resignation. The tiny nation tucked between Spain and France participated in the qualifying stages of the 2002 World Cup and the 2004 European championship, but lost every game. (AP)

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