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Group F preview: Greece and Georgia aim high

The onus is on Greece to gain ground on leaders Croatia against an under-fire Israel side, whose goalkeeper Dudu Aouate feared the game could "keep our chances alive or end the campaign".

Fernando Santos's Greece could end Tuesday on top of Group F
Fernando Santos's Greece could end Tuesday on top of Group F ©Getty Images

With UEFA EURO 2012 Group F leaders Croatia not in competitive action again until November, both Greece and Georgia could take over at the top. The 2004 champions are at home against a troubled Israel side, while Latvia are hosting Temuri Ketsbaia's unbeaten charges.

Greece v Israel, Piraeus
Greece coach Fernando Santos is without the suspended Vassilios Torossidis – scorer of the only goal against Latvia on Friday – and Alexandros Tziolis, who has been ruled out for four months after breaking his tibia in the latter stages of that match. AEK Athens FC midfielder Grigoris Makos and Panionios GSS right-back Ioannis Maniatis have been called up as replacements.

Israel have come in for criticism following their 2-1 home defeat by Croatia on Saturday, but Dudu Aouate said: "Croatia had almost no chances apart from the two goals they scored. We had three better shots but weren't able to score." The goalkeeper, the captain with Yossi Benayoun injured, says the trip to Greece is a must-win fixture. "This game could either keep our chances alive or end the campaign." Israel go into the game without the suspended Tal Ben Haim so Rami Gershon could be in line for his debut. Dedi Ben Dayan and Eran Zahavi face late fitness tests.

Latvia v Georgia, Riga
Aleksandrs Starkovs has minor concerns over Andrejs Rubins and Aleksandrs Cauņa following the 1-0 defeat by Greece but expects the duo to be fit for the visit of Georgia. "They [Georgia] are our old rivals who have started the qualification campaign with good results," said the Latvia coach.

Ketsbaia, meanwhile, is still savouring his team's 1-0 defeat of Malta – Georgia's first competitive victory since October 2007. "We were awaiting this win for three years and I hope it will help us mentally," said Ketsbaia. Ucha Lobjanidze returns after suspension but Zurab Khizanishvili misses out after receiving his second booking of the campaign last week.

Group F table

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