( CNN ) -- Finland ruined Sergio Ramos ' 100th appearance for Spain on Friday as the planet 's 87th-ranked team held the No . 1 side and defending World Cup champion in a qualifier for next year 's tournament in Brazil . Real Madrid defender Ramos became the eighth player from his country to reach the milestone , and duly put his side ahead with a header from a corner four minutes into the second half in Gijon . Finland 's dogged defending had frustrated Spain 's intricate passing game , and the visiting side scored a shock equalizer in the 79th minute as Teemu Pukki got behind the defense to slot in Alexander Ring 's low cross . The draw extended Spain 's unbeaten run to 19 matches , but left Vicente del Bosque 's team second in Group I behind France ahead of Tuesday 's trip to Paris . Only the top nation will automatically qualify from the five-side group , with the runner-up hoping to go into the playoffs . `` We controlled the match but it slipped away in the final minutes , '' Ramos told reporters . `` Doubtless we were thinking too much about France -- now we really do have to think about that one . They are a great team , but we can beat them . '' The French won 3-1 at home to third-placed Georgia to go two points clear of Spain after four matches , with goals from striker Olivier Giroud and midfielders Mathieu Valbuena and Franck Ribery . The Finns remained bottom , with two points from three games . In Group A , Croatia all but ended the qualification hopes of neighbor Serbia with a 2-0 victory in the first clash between the two teams since they became independent nations after the war that split Yugoslavia . With away fans banned in Zagreb due to ongoing tensions , Mario Mandzukic took advantage of a mistake by Aleksandar Kolarov to score the opening goal and fellow striker Ivica Olic sealed Croatia 's fourth win in five matches . It put the Croats second on goal difference behind Belgium , while Wales moved above Serbia into third place with a 2-1 win over Scotland . Belgium won 2-0 away to Macedonia , with Eden Hazard 's second-half penalty adding to Kevin De Bruyne 's opener . Bulgaria consolidated second place in Group B with a 6-0 thrashing of Malta , as Aleksandar Tonev scored a hat-trick , while Denmark won 3-0 away to the Czech Republic to claim third place on goal difference -- but four points adrift of a possible playoff spot . Germany moved five points clear at the top of Group C with a 3-0 win over Kazakhstan , while second-placed Sweden drew 0-0 at home to the Republic of Ireland . Austria moved above the Irish into third on goal difference after thrashing bottom side the Faroe Islands 6-0 . The Netherlands marched to a fifth successive win in Group D , beating Estonia 3-0 . Hungary remained second on goal difference above Romania after conceding a late equalizer in their 2-2 draw -- a result which left both nations five points behind the Dutch . Turkey beat bottom side Andorra to be four points further back in fourth place . Switzerland stayed top in Group E without kicking a ball , as Albania moved up to second on goal difference above Iceland after their respective one-goal wins away to Norway and Slovenia . Portugal 's hopes of automatic qualification from Group F suffered a big blow as Cristiano Ronaldo 's team needed late goals from Helder Postiga and Fabio Coentrao to draw 3-3 in Israel . The result left Israel second above the Portuguese on goal difference , with both teams four points adrift of Russia -- whose match in Northern Ireland was postponed until Saturday due to heavy snow . Bosnia-Herzegovina moved three points clear of Greece at the top of Group G after winning 3-1 against the previously undefeated 2004 European champions , with two goals from striker Edin Dzeko . Third-placed Slovakia 's hopes of a second successive World Cup appearance were dented by a 1-1 draw with Lithuania . Montenegro and England set up a crunch Group H clash on Tuesday after contrasting wins . A 1-0 victory in Moldova put Montenegro two points clear at the top , as both teams had a player sent off and striker Mirko Vucinic netted the only goal in the 79th minute . England thrashed San Marino 8-0 as striker Jermain Defoe scored twice , while Ukraine moved up to third on goal difference above Poland with a 3-1 away victory in a match between the Euro 2012 host nations .
Spain battling to automatically qualify for 2014 World Cup after Finland draw . Trip to Paris could prove vital as France move two points clear in Group I. Croatia wins grudge match against Serbia to boost qualification hopes . Germany and the Netherlands remain unbeaten at top of respective groups .