On 1 September 2016, he enjoyed a 2–1 away win over the Netherlands in an International friendly, the first ever Greek win on Dutch soil with goals from Kostas Mitroglou and Giannis Gianniotas. On 6 September 2016, Greece played against newly FIFA recognized minnow country Gibraltar who were appearing in their first FIFA competition game in their history and Skibbe's Greeks despite at one point the scores were level at 1–1, they went on to defeat the Gibraltarians 4–1 at Estádio Algarve in Faro/Loulé and get off the mark strong in their Round 1 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification group game. Greece have continued to be successful in their group, drawing 1–1 to a highly commendable Belgium squad on 25 March 2017.
