Player Ratings: Greece 0-0 Ukraine

Tonight's cagey encounter leaves Shevchenko's men in prime position to secure a ticket to South Africa. Goal.com rates the players on display in Athens...

Nov 14, 2009 9:10:00 PM

WCQ: Greece v Ukraine / Karagounis (INTIME)

Teams

GREECE

Alexandros Tzorvas: 6 - Saved well from Shevchenko at the start. Almost made a howler near the end when he let an easy back pass run underneath his boot to concede a corner which Ukraine should have done better from.

Nikos Spyropoulos: 6 - Battled gamely in an average team display.

Loukas Vyntra: 6 - Enjoyed the battle with Shevchenko and was reasonable in his distribution.

Vangelis Moras: 5.5 - Didn't make any great impression in what was in truth a match for the purists.

Sotiris Kyrgiakos: 6.5 - Was in the thick of it from the start and almost nicked a late winner when his header crept agonisingly by the post. Could and indeed should have done better.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos: 5.5 - Earned a booking for hauling down Shevchenko by literally grabbing him by the scruff of the neck. Let the veteran striker get goal side of him too often.

Giorgios Karagounis: 7.5 - The captain sent in several quality balls from set pieces which his team-mates should have done better from.

Kostas Katsouranis: 5.5 - Another who struggled to make an impression in a packed midfield.

Giorgos Samaras: 7.5 - Was easily the Greeks biggest attacking threat in the second half. Fizzed over a fine drive with ten minutes to go which just whistled by the cross bar.

Dimitris Salpingidis: 7.5 - Showed more in the first half when he sent a few good crosses. One of Greece's better performers on a night when few stood out.

Theofanis Gekas: 5.5 - Apart from his disallowed goal he didn't look like adding to his World Cup qualifying tally. Not a surprise when he was taken off in the 65th minute.

Substitutes

Angelos Charisteas: 6 - The hero of Euro 2004 came on for the final 25 minutes and competed well without ever looking like scoring.

Konstantinos Mitroglou: 5 - Making his debut a lot was expected from the young man. Ballooned a shot well over when he was given space and seemed a bit in awe of the occasion. Is capable of far better as we have seen at club level.

UKRAINE

Andriy Pyatov: 8 - Made a terrific instinct save to deny Gekas in the dying stages of the first half. Was a safe pair of hands throughout but almost blotted his copy book when he misread a late set piece which Kyrgiakos should have punished him for.

Yevhen Khacheridi: 6 - Battled with Samaras throughout and came off worse for wear in a tasty challenge in the first half.

Taras Mikhalik: 6.5 - A solid display notable for his effort from 25 yards out which tested Tzorvas in the second half.

Oleksander Kucher: 6 - Looked decent at the back in a well organised Ukranian outfit.

Yaroslav Rakitskiy: 7 - Went in hard on Karagounis in the first half to let the Greek captain know just who he was dealing with. Showed some good skill later on in the first half when he went on a mazy dribble.

Vasyl Kobin: 5 - Poor display and tried far too many optimistic shots from range when he had better options. His coach will not be pleased.

Oleh Husyev: 6.5 - Had a half chance in the first half when he anticipated a punt upfield and clipped it with the edge of his boot to force a save out of Tzorvas.

Anatoliy Tymoschuk: 5.5 - Fairly anonymous display from the Bayern man. Didn't get on the ball enough and when he did wasn't very confident with his delivery.

Ruslan Rotan: 6 - Was involved in a good passage of play in the first half when he sent in an inviting ball. Wasted some good pieces options with woeful shooting.

Andriy Shevchenko: 7.5 - While it may be a stretch to say he's back to his old self 'Sheva' certainly seems happier now that he's returned home. Went close with a free kick early on and was a menace when his side broke forward.

Artem Milevsky: 5.5 - Didn't have much service and was outshone by his veteran team-mate up front.

Substitutes

Andriy Yarmolenko: 6.5 - Came on for the second half and gave the home side a scare when he went on long run down the flank with only minutes remaining. Ran out of puff and talent to deliver a wayward ball which marred his efforts.

Oleksandr Aliev: N/A - On for the final few minutes which wasn't long enough to be rated.

Patrick Reilly, Goal.com

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