Estonia and Switzerland start with stalemate

Runners-up this summer, Switzerland had to settle for a goalless draw against Estonia as they started their bid to reach the 2013 finals.

Switzerland had the best of a tight contest but could not find a way through, with the hosts coming more and more into the game as it progressed. Content to defend in the first half, Frank Bernhardt's Estonia showed greater ambition after the break. Nevertheless, the spoils were shared as both teams got their Group 5 campaigns under way.

The visitors dominated possession early on but could not create many clear-cut openings. Pajtim Kasami's 24th-minute free-kick was saved by Marko Meerits, while Rolf Feltscher shot just wide soon after. Estonia's first real attack came ten minutes before half-time, and Meerits had to be on his guard once again to keep out a misdirected header from team-mate Andrei Veis, before the keeper pushed away a Haris Seferović effort.

Estonia continued their brave resistance upon the restart but also started to cause their visitors problems. Captain Henri Anier fired just wide as the game opened up a tad, and Albert Prosa was also proving to be a thorn in the side of Pierluigi Tami's team.

The closing stages belonged to Switzerland, though, and Meerits nearly undid all his good work as the pressure mounted, but Artjom Artjunin was on hand to clear off the line following the keeper's mistake.