Armenia beat Kazakhstan to get off the mark
Sunday, August 11, 2013
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Kazakhstan 0-1 Armenia
Gagik Poghosyan's fourth-minute header in Astana was enough for Rafayel Nazaryan's side to open their account in qualifying Group 10.
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Armenia are off the mark in UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying Group 10 thanks to a 1-0 victory against Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan found themselves second in the section going into the game, having won 1-0 in Belarus in their opening fixture. However, they have now been leapfrogged by their opponents in Astana, who prevailed courtesy of Gagik Poghosyan's early goal.
Poghosyan's decisive intervention came in the fourth minute, heading in from Aghvan Papikyan's corner. It proved sufficient for Rafayel Nazaryan's side, who negotiated the remainder of the game without undue alarm.
"I am really pleased that we won the game against Kazakhstan," said the Armenia coach. "They are a well-balanced team throughout. In the first half we played more aggressively but then we decided to change our tactics. In the second half we played more defensively because we started to feel the pressure."