Faroese win keeps Serbia on track

Serbia remain in pole position to claim second spot in UEFA EURO 2012 qualifying Group C having beaten the Faroe Islands 3-1 in Belgrade.

Narrow 1-0 victors in Northern Ireland on Friday, Serbia knew they would have their work cut out against a Faroese side who, although bottom of the section, lost only 1-0 to Italy in their previous outing. The visitors faced an uphill struggle after just six minutes in the Serbian capital, though, after Milan Jovanović's goal. Zoran Tošić doubled the hosts' lead and although Fródi Benjaminsen halved the Faroes' deficit, Zdravko Kuzmanović made sure of the result midway through the second half.

The opener for Vladimir Petrović's team came by virtue of an Aleksandar Kolarov cross from the left which Jovanović headed past visiting goalkeeper René Tórgard. Manchester City FC full-back Kolarov again played a key role in the second on 22 minutes, Tošić applying the finishing touch to his fine build-up play.

Brian Kerr's team did not buckle, though, and got on the mark with their first real attack of the game, Benjaminsen exchanging passes with a team-mate before finishing past Bojan Jorgačević.

The final goal of the game arrived with 21 minutes remaining, Kuzmanović finishing from range to end any lingering Faroese resistance. Serbia might have produced a more emphatic result to mark captain Dejan Stanković's 100th international appearance, but Tošić and Kolarov were denied in added time.

Serbia meet group winners Italy in their next game on 7 October, with Estonia and Slovenia still capable of denying them second place. The Faroe Islands will finish bottom of the section with four points from ten games.