EUROPEAN QUALIFIERS - 2014/16 SEASON MATCH PRESS KITS Windsor Park - Belfast Thursday 8 October 2015 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Northern Ireland Group F - Matchday -4 Greece Last updated 12/07/2021 18:12CET Official Partners of UEFA EURO 2020 Previous meetings 2 Match background 3 Squad list 4 Head coach 6 Match officials 7 Competition facts 8 Match-by-match lineups 9 Team facts 11 Legend 13 1 Northern Ireland - Greece Thursday 8 October 2015 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Windsor Park, Belfast Previous meetings Head to Head 2016 UEFA European Championship Stage Date Match Result Venue Goalscorers reached 14/10/2014 QR (GS) Greece - Northern Ireland 0-2 Piraeus Ward 9, K. Lafferty 51 UEFA EURO 2004 Stage Date Match Result Venue Goalscorers reached 11/10/2003 QR (GS) Greece - Northern Ireland 1-0 Athens Tsiartas 68 (P) 02/04/2003 QR (GS) Northern Ireland - Greece 0-2 Belfast Charisteas 4, 55 FIFA World Cup Stage Date Match Result Venue Goalscorers reached 17/10/1961 QR (GS) Northern Ireland - Greece 2-0 Belfast Mclaughlin 29, 57 Papaemanouil 9, 84; 03/05/1961 QR (GS) Greece - Northern Ireland 2-1 Athens McIlroy 85 Final Qualifying Total tournament Home Away Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA EURO Northern Ireland 1 0 0 1 2 1 0 1 - - - - 3 1 0 2 2 3 Greece 2 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 - - - - 3 2 0 1 3 2 FIFA* Northern Ireland 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 - - - - 2 1 0 1 3 2 Greece 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 - - - - 2 1 0 1 2 3 Friendlies Northern Ireland - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 0 0 1 2 3 Greece - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 0 0 3 2 Total Northern Ireland 2 1 0 1 3 1 0 2 - - - - 6 2 0 4 7 8 Greece 3 2 0 1 2 1 0 1 - - - - 6 4 0 2 8 7 * FIFA World Cup/FIFA Confederations Cup 2 Northern Ireland - Greece Thursday 8 October 2015 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Windsor Park, Belfast Match background Northern Ireland will seal a place in their first-ever UEFA European Championship if they get three points against rock-bottom Greece in their last Group F home game. • Northern Ireland will also qualify irrespective of the outcome in Belfast if Hungary simultaneously fail to defeat the Faroe Islands. Previous meetings • Jamie Ward and Kyle Lafferty scored as Northern Ireland won 2-0 in Greece in the sides' first Group F meeting. • Northern Ireland's record in six fixtures against Greece is W2 D0 L4 (W1 D0 L1 in Belfast). That lone home defeat came in a FIFA World Cup qualifier over 50 years ago. Form guide • Northern Ireland have never played in a UEFA European Championship, though they got to the FIFA World Cup finals in 1958 and 1982. • Northern Ireland are unbeaten at home in Group F: two victories followed by two draws. • Greece are bottom of the section having yet to win a Group F game. Their away record in this qualifying campaign reads D3 L1. They have lost all four of their home qualifiers without scoring. Disciplinary • Chris Baird, Kyle Lafferty and Connor McLaughlin are all banned against Greece; Chris Brunt's next yellow card will incur a suspension. • Kostas Manolas serves a one-match ban against Northern Ireland; Nikos Karelis, Panagiotis Kone and Andreas Samaris are all within a booking of a suspension. Trivia and links • Kyle Lafferty has netted seven of Northern Ireland's 12 goals in this campaign. • Greece go into this fixture having played 250 competitive international matches in EUROs and World Cups; their record is W107 D52 L91. • The two countries have met in four UEFA age-group tournaments, Greece registering three wins to Northern Ireland's one – the most recent of those encounters a 2-0 success for the visitors in Dungannon in a 2012 UEFA European Under-19 Championship tie. • The nations' clubs have met in six UEFA games to date, with the Greek sides' record W3 D2 L1. The most recent of those ties was very tight; Linfield won 1-0 at Xanthi in the 2013/14 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round but went down 2-1 after extra time in the return fixture in Belfast, losing the tie on away goals. 3 Northern Ireland - Greece Thursday 8 October 2015 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Windsor Park, Belfast Squad list Northern Ireland Current season Overall Qual. FT Team No. Player DoB Age Club D Pld Gls Pld Gls Pld Gls Goalkeepers - Roy Carroll 30/09/1977 38 Notts County - 5 0 0 0 41 - - Alan Mannus 19/05/1982 33 St Johnstone - 0 0 0 0 7 - - Michael McGovern 12/07/1984 31 Hamilton - 3 0 0 0 6 - Defenders - Gareth McAuley 05/12/1979 35 West Brom - 8 3 0 0 55 7 - Rory McArdle 01/05/1987 28 Bradford - 0 0 0 0 7 - - Craig Cathcart 06/02/1989 26 Watford - 2 0 0 0 21 - - Lee Hodson 02/10/1991 24 MK Dons - 0 0 0 0 15 - - Luke McCullough 15/02/1994 21 Doncaster - 1 0 0 0 4 - - Paddy McNair 27/04/1995 20 Man. United - 1 0 0 0 3 - Midfielders - Steven Davis 01/01/1985 30 Southampton - 7 0 0 0 76 5 - Paddy McCourt 16/12/1983 31 Luton - 1 0 0 0 17 2 - Chris Brunt 14/12/1984 30 West Brom * 6 0 0 0 52 1 - Jamie Ward 12/05/1986 29 Nottm Forest - 5 1 0 0 16 2 - Josh Magennis 15/08/1990 25 Kilmarnock - 5 0 0 0 14 - - Corry Evans 30/07/1990 25 Blackburn - 6 0 0 0 30 1 - Oliver Norwood 12/04/1991 24 Reading - 8 0 0 0 27 - - Stuart Dallas 19/04/1991 24 Leeds - 4 0 0 0 7 1 - Shane Ferguson 12/07/1991 24 Millwall - 4 0 0 0 20 1 - Ben Reeves 19/11/1991 23 MK Dons - 1 0 0 0 2 - Forwards - Niall McGinn 20/07/1987 28 Aberdeen - 6 1 0 0 38 2 Dundee - Billy McKay 22/10/1988 26 - 2 0 0 0 10 - United - Liam Boyce 08/04/1991 24 Ross County - 0 0 0 0 5 - - Will Grigg 03/07/1991 24 Wigan - 0 0 0 0 7 - Coach - Michael O'Neill 05/07/1969 46 - 8 0 0 0 28 - 4 Northern Ireland - Greece Thursday 8 October 2015 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Windsor Park, Belfast Greece Current season Overall Qual. FT Team No. Player DoB Age Club D Pld Gls Pld Gls Pld Gls Goalkeepers - Orestis Karnezis 11/07/1985 30 Udinese - 8 0 0 0 31 - - Markos Vellidis 04/04/1987 28 Giannina - 0 0 0 0 1 - - Stefanos Kapino 18/03/1994 21 Olympiacos - 0 0 0 0 3 - Defenders - Loukas Vyntra 05/02/1981 34 H. Tel-Aviv - 4 0 0 0 55 - - Vangelis Moras 26/08/1981 34 Verona - 2 0 0 0 22 - - Vasilis Torosidis 10/06/1985 30 Roma - 6 0 0 0 77 7 - Sokratis Papastathopoulos 09/06/1988 27 Dortmund - 7 1 0 0 58 2 - Kostas Stafylidis 02/12/1993 21 Augsburg - 3 0 0 0 5 - - José Holebas 27/06/1984 31 Watford - 3 0 0 0 29 1 - Stelios Kitsiou 28/09/1993 22 PAOK - 1 0 0 0 1 - - Adam-Kristof Tzanetpoulos 10/02/1995 20 AEK - 0 0 0 0 - - Midfielders - Christos Aravidis 13/03/1987 28 AEK - 2 0 0 0 2 - - Alexandros Tziolis 13/02/1985 30 PAOK - 2 0 0 0 52 1 - Panagiotis Kone 26/07/1987 28 Udinese * 6 0 0 0 26 1 - Andreas Samaris 13/06/1989 26 Benfica * 8 0 0 0 16 1 - Panagiotis Tachtsidis 15/02/1991 24 Genoa - 4 0 0 0 11 - - Petros Mantalos 31/08/1991 24 AEK - 2 0 0 0 3 - - Kostas Fortounis 16/10/1992 22 Olympiacos - 3 0 0 0 15 - - Dimitris Pelkas 26/10/1993 21 PAOK - 0 0 0 0 - - Forwards - Kostas Mitroglou 12/03/1988 27 Benfica - 6 0 0 0 42 8 - Stefanos Athanasiadis 24/12/1988 26 PAOK - 4 0 0 0 11 - - Nikos Karelis 24/02/1992 23 Panathinaikos * 6 1 0 0 7 1 Coach - Kostas Tsanas 22/08/1967 48 - 2 0 0 0 3 - 5 Northern Ireland - Greece Thursday 8 October 2015 - 20.45CET (19.45 local time) Match press kit Windsor Park, Belfast Head coach Michael O'Neill Date of birth: 5 July 1969 Nationality: Northern Irish Playing career: Coleraine FC, Newcastle United FC, Dundee United FC, Hibernian FC, Coventry City FC, Aberdeen FC (loan), Reading FC (loan), Wigan Athletic FC, Saint Johnstone FC, Portland Timbers, Clydebank FC, Glentoran FC, Ayr United FC Coaching career: Brechin City FC, Shamrock Rovers FC, Northern Ireland • A midfielder and forward during a 20-year playing career, O'Neill spent the bulk of his time in Scotland, most notably with Dundee United and Hibernian. Enjoyed late success when winning a Northern Irish league and League Cup double with Glentoran in 2002/03. • Made 31 appearances for his country, scoring four goals, two of which came in a memorable 5-3 victory against Austria during EURO '96 qualifying. • Moved into coaching as assistant manager of Scottish club Cowdenbeath in 2005 before taking the reins at Brechin in March 2006. Was named coach of Shamrock Rovers in the Republic of Ireland in December 2008, guiding the Hoops to a second-place finish in his debut season before clinching their first title since 1994 in 2010.