Luck's out for Luxembourg

Yet to pick up a point in UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifying, coach Guy Hellers is hoping for a change of fortune as Luxembourg face Belarus on 13 October.

EURO washout
Luxembourg have had some encouraging results in friendlies in the last 12 months, not least a 2-1 win against Gambia, but when it comes to competitive games the EURO campaign has been a washout. Hellers' side have lost all nine of their games, scoring just once and conceding 20 times, with three of those goals coming in the recent 3-0 defeat against Bulgaria.

No match
An inexperienced side, with an average aged of 26 and a half, found themselves no match for Bulgaria. Hellers said: "Bulgaria were superior in running as well as in their fighting spirit. We had big problems with the exceptional player Dimitar Berbatov who scored twice. I am disappointed with the performance of some of my players, whose way of playing I did not like at all."

Friendly game
On Wednesday, Luxembourg will host Belgian top-tier team KFC Germinal Beerschot Antwerpen in a friendly in Koerich hoping to restore some composure ahead of the upcoming qualifier in Gomel. However, the feeling is that - for all of Hellers' efforts - not much can be done to raise the standard of the national team's performances until more local players move abroad.

Simple fact
Paul Philipp, president of the Luxembourg Football Federation and a former professional player and national team coach said: "The spine of the national team can only be strengthened if we have four or five players who play for foreign clubs." At the moment Hellers has only two professionals at his disposal: Jeff Strasser from FC Metz and Mario Mutsch from FC Aarau.

'More training'
While Luxembourg have no illusions as to their place in European football, the nation - which includes 30,000 licensed players - perhaps should be getting better results. Philipp is certainly eager to grab something from their remaining three qualifiers, but added: "The current situation can only be changed with more training."

Limited incentive
The question is where that training will come from. In an ideal world, players would be training with professional clubs every day, but the majority of local players are semi-professional. Turning professional means moving abroad, but with players able to earn good wages from their clubs to add to their everyday earnings, there is arguably not enough incentive for them to head away.