Turkey to face Germany and Austria in Euro 2012 qualifiers

Turkey has a large number of fans among its expatriate workers in Germany and so the Turkish national team will draw great crowds at home and on the road when it plays the Germans.

“I am neither shocked nor pleased. Logistically, it’s not going to be simple,” Germany coach Joachim Löw said of the long trips to Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. “It’s a German-speaking group with many German coaches.” Azerbaijan is coached by former Germany boss Berti Vogts, while Kazakhstan’s coach is also a German, Bernd Storck.

Defending champion Spain will have the Czech Republic and Scotland among its rivals in the qualifying round. Lithuania and Liechtenstein completed Group I in Sunday’s draw, meaning Spain, the top-ranked team in the world, will not have to face any team that qualified for this year’s World Cup in South Africa.

Reigning World Cup champion Italy will play two teams that have qualified for this year’s tournament in South Africa -- Serbia and Slovenia. Italy, which won the European title in 1968, also faces Northern Ireland, Estonia and the Faeroe Islands in Group C. As co-hosts, Poland and Ukraine qualify for the tournament automatically.

Draw at a glance

• Group A: Germany, Turkey, Austria, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan
• Group B: Russia, Slovakia, Ireland, Macedonia, Armenia, Andorra
• Group C: Italy, Serbia, Northern Ireland, Slovenia, Estonia, Faeroe Islands
• Group D: France, Romania, Bosnia, Belarus, Albania, Luxembourg
• Group E: Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Hungary, Moldova, San Marino
• Group F: Croatia, Greece, Israel, Latvia, Georgia, Malta
• Group G: England, Switzerland, Bulgaria, Wales, Montenegro
• Group H: Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Greek Cyprus, Iceland
• Group I: Spain, Czech Republic, Scotland, Lithuania, Liechtenstein