Finland leave it late to deny Lithuania

A last-minute Patrick O'Shaughnessy goal earned Finland a 2-2 opening-day draw with Lithuania and prevented the Group 1 leaders securing two wins from their first two fixtures.

Mika Laurikainen's side started well and Joel Pohjanpalo gave them the lead after 14 minutes, nipping in to convert Nikolai Alho's terrific cross. That advantage lasted until the break as Finland, and notably the effervescent Alho, controlled proceedings.

The second half was a different story, however, as the visitors' dynamic, incisive counterattacks caused problems. One such move, eight minutes in, brought the equaliser as Lukas Spalvis cracked a header in via an upright. He doubled his tally 17 minutes later, supplying the finish to another well-worked team break.

Keen not to start their campaign on the wrong foot, Finland dug deep and got their reward at the last. O'Shaughnessy latched onto Moshtagh Yaghoubi's splendid pass and beat Lithuania goalkeeper Tomas Švedkauskas from just inside the box to claim a share of the spoils.