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PARIS. — Albania pulled off a major shock by downing Portugal as world soccer champions Germany denied battling Scotland and minnows Gibraltar were demolished by Poland in the opening salvoes of Euro 2016 qualifying on Sunday.
Portugal, first round casualties at the World Cup, were sorely missing their skipper Cristiano Ronaldo but despite the Real Madrid star’s absence the 1-0 loss to a team ranked 71st in the world was a major embarrassment for Paulo Bento’s side. Albania, who have failed to qualify for a European Championships in half a century, humbled the mighty Portuguese in their own backyard.

Euro 2016 qualifying results
Georgia 1 – 2 Republic of Ireland
Germany 2 – 1 Scotland
Gibraltar 0 – 7 Poland
Hungary 1 – 2 Northern Ireland
Faroe Islands 1 – 3 Finland
Greece 0 – 1 Romania
Denmark 2 – 1 Armenia
Portugal 0 – 1 Albania — AFP.