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Ukraine draw Iceland 1-1 in World Cup qualifier

Xinhua, September 6, 2016 Adjust font size:

Ukraine started its World Cup 2018 qualifying campaign with a 1-1 home draw with Iceland on Monday night at the Olympic stadium in Kiev.

The game in Group I was held without a single spectator in the 70,050-seat stadium as Ukrainian fans were punished for their racist behavior during the World Cup 2014 qualifier against San Marino.

Despite the absence of fans, the two teams played quite strongly, trying to impress their managers -- Andriy Shevchenko and Heimir Hallgrimsson, who both made their international debuts as head coaches.

At the start, the visitors appeared to be more fortunate in terms of converting the chances as Alfred Finnbogason found a gap inside Ukraine's defensive line just five minutes into the game, scoring an opener.

Andriy Yarmolenko equalized for Ukraine four minutes before the break.

Eugene Konoplyanka squandered the golden opportunity to give his team a lead, missing the penalty in the 83rd minute.

Ukraine and Iceland play in the qualification group for World Cup 2018 with Croatia, Turkey, Finland and the new FIFA member Kosovo.

After the first matchday, all six group members earned one point each after drawing the first game with the same score 1-1. Endit