Albania progress on hold after 2-0 defeat by Serbia

Serbia's Aleksandar Kolarov (2nd L) celebrates his goal against Albania with fellow team mates Dusko Tosic (L), Aleksandar Mitrovic (top) and Luka Milivojevic during their Euro 2016 Group I qualifying soccer match in Elbasan, Albania October 8, 2015. REUTERS/Arben Celi

ELBASAN, Albania (Reuters) - Albania missed a chance to reach their first major soccer tournament after a 2-0 home defeat by Serbia in a politically charged Euro 2016 Group I qualifier on Thursday.

The result left the Albanians in third place on 11 points from seven games, seven adrift of Portugal who qualified for next year's tournament in France with a 1-0 win over Denmark.