No missing pieces for Belarus

Belarus coach Yuri Puntus has named his strongest 22-man squad for their opening UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifiers against Albania and the Netherlands.

Absentees return
Following Belarus' 3-0 friendly win against Andorra earlier this week, defender Sergei Shtanyuk and strikers Vitali Kutuzov and Vyacheslav Hleb have returned to the fold for the two Group G encounters on 2 and 6 September - the first in Minsk, the second in Eindhoven.

Kornilenko suspension
The experienced Sergei Gurenko of FC Lokomotiv Moskva and Andrei Lavrik of FC Amkar Perm were both omitted from the squad again and Puntus' principal concern going into the opener against Albania appears to be how to replace the suspended FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk striker Sergei Kornilenko.

Belarus squad
Goalkeepers: Yuri Zhevnov (FC Moskva), Vasili Khomutovski (FC Tom Tomsk)

Defenders: Sergei Omelyanchuk (FC Shinnik Yaroslavl), Sergei Shtanyuk (FC Luch-Energia Vladivostok), Dmitri Lentsevich (FC Torpedo Moskva), Aleksandr Yurevich (FC Shakhtyor Soligorsk), Aleksandr Shagoiko (FC Gomel), Aleksei Pankovets (FC Gomel), Dmitri Molosh (FC BATE Borisov)

Midfielders: Timofei Kalachev (FC Rostov), Vladimir Korytko (FC Terek Chechenskaya Respublika), Aleksandr Kulchy (FC Tom Tomsk), Denis Kovba (FC Krylya Sovetov Samara), Maksim Romaschenko (FC Dinamo Moskva), Aleksandr Hleb (Arsenal FC), Oleg Strakhanovich (FC MTZ-RIPO Minsk)

Forwards: Vitali Kutuzov (FC Parma), Vitali Bulyga (FC Tom Tomsk), Sergei Kornilenko (FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk), Artyom Kontsevoi (FC MTZ-RIPO Minsk), Vitali Lanko (FC Spartak Nalchik), Vyacheslav Hleb (FC MTZ-RIPO Minsk)