ST GALLEN, Switzerland, (Reuters) – Switzerland made it seven wins out of seven in their World Cup qualifying group when they beat Andorra 3-0 helped by a double from Haris Seferovic in a rain-soaked match which was twice interrupted to clear water off the pitch on Thursday.
Group B leaders Switzerland have 21 points, three ahead of Portugal who beat the Faroe Islands 5-1. Third-placed Hungary beat Latvia 3-1 to reach 10 points.
Even after an army of helpers swept water off the pitch, conditions were barely playable as the ball got stuck in puddles and the players splashed around.
The Swiss went ahead in the 43rd minute when Haris Seferovic headed in after Xherdan Shaqiri managed to lift a cross into the Andorra area.
The second goal by Seferovic in the 62nd summed up the evening as Andorra’s attempts to clear the ball were hampered by the water on the pitch.
Admir Mehmedi’s cross evaded two players and was cleared off the line by a defender but went only as far as Eren Derdiyok who himself miscued before another defender sent the ball straight to Seferovic who stabbed it into the net from close range.
Stephan Lichtsteiner headed the third, with the Swiss guranteed at least the runners-up spot.
The group winners qualify directly for Russia while the eight best second-placed teams in the nine groups go into a playoff round.
The group ends with a showdown between Portugal and the Swiss in Lisbon on Oct. 10.
