Armenia win to keep qualification hopes alive

IRELAND’S Group B opponents Armenia retained their slim hopes of qualifying for Euro 2012 when they picked up their third win in Euro 2012 qualifying after beating bottom side Andorra 3-0.

Marcos Pizzelli gave the visitors the lead 10 minutes before half-time at the Estadi Comunal in Andorra la Vella and Gevorg Ghazaryan doubled their advantage in the 57th minute.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan completed the scoring with a stoppage-time penalty at the end of the game after Andorra defender Ildefons Lima was sent off in conceding the spot-kick.

The result lifts fourth-placed Armenia onto 11 points but is not enough to gain them any places in the standings, while Andorra remain rooted to the foot of the table with no points from their seven games.

ANDORRA: Josep Anton Gomez, Rubio, Lima, Bernaus, Emili Garcia, Pujol, Martinez, Vales, Ayala (Sanchez 86), Silva (Sebastian Gomez 71),Moreno (Vieira 80).

ARMENIA: Berezovsky, Hovsepyan, Mkoyan, Aleksanyan, Hayrapetyan, Sarkisov, Mkrtchyan, Mkhitaryan, Pizelli (Artur Edigaryan 83), Ghazaryan (Badoyan 88),Manucharyan (Malakyan 77).

Ref: Alexandre Kostadinov (Bulgaria).