Greece missed the World Cup. Unbeaten and above Germany, they play the Netherlands on 13 November.
Greece missed the 2026 World Cup, then won in Belgrade and Augsburg and drew twice; two November games decide whether they reach the Nations League quarter-finals.
Greece are unbeaten after four games in the Nations League's top division, level on eight points with the Netherlands and three clear of Germany. They also missed the 2026 World Cup. 12
Four games
| Date | Match | Score | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 September | Serbia v Greece, Belgrade | 1-2 | Živković 4'; Tzolis 74'; Douvikas 90+4' 3 |
| 27 September | Germany v Greece, Augsburg | 0-1 | Kourbelis 74' 4 |
| 1 October | Greece v Netherlands, Thessaloniki | 2-2 | Ioannidis 23'; Masouras 45'; Van Dijk 59'; Reijnders 89' 1 |
| 4 October | Greece v Germany, Thessaloniki | 0-0 | No goals 5 |
The win in Augsburg was Germany's first defeat by Greece in eleven meetings. Germany were ranked 12th in the world at the time; Greece were 41st. 4
Against the Netherlands, Greece led 2-0 at Toumba Stadium before Virgil van Dijk headed one back and Tijjani Reijnders equalised in the 89th minute. 1
The team
Kostas Tzolakis, 23, is the goalkeeper. 1 In front of him: Kostas Tsimikas, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Panagiotis Retsos and Manolis Saliakas. 13
Christos Tzolis, 24, joined Arsenal from Club Brugge in the summer. Konstantinos Karetsas, 18, plays for Borussia Dortmund. Both play wide. 67
Their coach is Ivan Jovanović, a Serb. 1
Fotis Ioannidis, Vangelis Pavlidis and Giorgos Masouras fill the attacking roles. Ioannidis scored the opener against the Netherlands and set up Masouras's goal. 1 Dimitrios Kourbelis, 32, scored the winner in Augsburg. 4
Jürgen Klopp has said Greece's young team could have the makings of a "golden generation". AP reports that the run follows an overhaul of Greek domestic football built to bring young players through. 1
At the World Cup
Greece won the 2004 European Championship. 4 Their first World Cup finals win came in 2010, 2-1 against Nigeria after Sani Kaita's red card, with Dimitris Salpingidis and Vasilis Torosidis scoring. 8
In 2014 they reached the last 16 and lost to Costa Rica in Recife: 1-1, Sokratis Papastathopoulos equalising in stoppage time, then 5-3 on penalties. 9
What November decides
The Netherlands host Greece on Friday 13 November, 8:45pm local / 2:45pm ET / 11:45am PT. 10
Greece then play Serbia on Monday 16 November, 9:45pm local / 2:45pm ET / 11:45am PT. 11
The top two in each League A group reach March's quarter-finals, which are played over two legs, and that leaves two places for Greece, the Netherlands and Germany. 12
Quote of the Day
"The Dutch changed tactics in the second half and we didn't respond adequately. But I believe we definitely have moved up a level and are getting better by the day." — Fotis Ioannidis, Greece forward, after the 2-2 with the Netherlands 1
References
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- 7Konstantinos Karetsas | ESPN
espn.com
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