Spain, Portugal assured of quarterfinal spots in UEFA Nations League
Spain ensured it has the chance to defend its UEFA Nations League title after booking a place in the quarterfinals thanks to a 2-1 win away to Denmark in Group 4 on Friday.
Spain ensured it has the chance to defend its UEFA Nations League title after booking a place in the quarterfinals thanks to a 2-1 win away to Denmark in Group 4 on Friday.
Italy, who had only named two starters from the XI that began their Matchday 2 match against Hungary, created the first chance three minutes in. The home backline was dissected by Lorenzo Pellegrini's clever pass, but Davide Frattesi side-footed agonisingly wide.
Austria had shown their ability to punish generosity in their 3-0 win over Croatia, and Andreas Weimann pounced when given space in front of goal, slotting in Konrad Laimer's incisive 37th-minute cross after Marko Arnautovic's deception.
Jonas Hofmann's second-half strike looked like it would condemn England to a second successive loss in the tournament, but Kane made sure that would not be the case, picking himself up to score his 50th goal for the country after being brought down in the box five minutes from time.
Both Croatia and France were coming off defeats in their previous matches, which made for a tense start to the game. However, with France coach Didier Deschamps making ten changes following his team's loss to Denmark, it was no surprise that the hosts created the first real chance.
Spain went into the game at La Cartuja Stadium in Seville knowing they needed a win to finish ahead of Germany in their group.
The win leaves Germany undefeated in their last 12 games and top of their Nations League group, a point ahead of second-placed Spain.
The Barcelona wonderkid cut inside from the left flank again before fizzing a spectacular finish beyond Pyatov from outside the area.
The announcements were made as UEFA said it had agreed on a course of action following a series of crisis meetings on Tuesday.
As a five-time winner of the coveted award, one just cannot ignore Cristiano Ronaldo’s candidature.
