France on Sunday wasted a chance to move a step closer to FIFA World Cup qualification after a 0-0 home draw with Luxembourg that leaves automatic qualification from Group A wide open with two games to go, while Belgium overcame stern resistance from Greece to qualify for Russia, winning 2-1 away from home.
Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku’s winning goal put the other Red Devils out of reach at the top of Group H.
There were contrasting emotions afterward for France and Luxembourg.
Photo: AFP
“We had the chances and didn’t take them,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “We should have done more.”
Luxembourg counterpart Luc Holtz could barely contain his delight.
“It’s a historic result,” Holtz said. “Yes, it’s a glorious day for Luxembourg football.”
Sweden moved one point behind France after easing to a 4-0 win away to Belarus, while a selection choice from Netherlands coach Dick Advocaat paid off as midfielder Davy Proepper scored his first two international goals in a 3-1 home win against Bulgaria.
Advocaat’s side are three points behind Sweden with two games remaining and still in with an outside chance of securing a playoff spot.
Group B rivals Switzerland and Portugal both won, with the former maintaining a perfect record and three-point lead. An Oct. 10 showdown in Lisbon is likely to decide which team qualifies automatically. The two sides have already secured the top two spots.
In Brussels, Belgium delivered a performance of character and proved they are building “a winning team,” coach Roberto Martinez said after they became the first nation to qualify from the European group stages.
The result also extended their unbeaten run to 11 games, tying the nation’s previous best.
“We must be proud about being the first from Europe to qualify and now look to work harder to become better,” said Martinez after Belgium advanced to an unassailable 22 points, eight ahead of second placed Bosnia with two matches left to play. “It was clear that we didn’t play well, we weren’t ourselves, but the game was only about winning, it was like a cup final. It was not about playing good football. We had to win, in whatever manner we could. The first half of the game was probably the worst football we’ve played in this campaign.”
Goals after halftime from Jan Vertonghen and Lukaku ensured the victory.
“I was really proud with the way the players fought. There were a few that really stood up — [Thibaut] Courtois, [Kevin] de Bruyne, Vertonghen, [Marouane] Fellaini. It is a real team and I can only but be proud of them,” Martinez added. “The players were not pleased at halftime and from their reaction you can see we are creating a winning team. They showed character, inspired one another and wanted to win. In a few weeks no one will remember how we did it.”
The victory meant Belgium have won seven of their eight group games, with a home draw against Greece in March the only blemish.
Belgium’s 35-goal haul in eight matches is the most by any team in the European qualifiers.
SSC Napoli’s Italian Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale with closest rivals Inter just one point behind. The hosts remain top with 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier on Sunday, with two rounds remaining. To make matters worse for Napoli, midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, struggling with an ankle injury, was forced off just minutes after the match began. Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
A stunning Lamine Yamal strike on Thursday helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win over local rivals RCD Espanyol, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table. Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble. Only the UEFA Champions League title escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2022-2023. Back then,
Jannik Sinner on Thursday marched into the semi-finals of the Italian Open after destroying Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-0, 6-1, while Coco Gauff won a marathon three-set battle with China’s Zheng Qinwen to advance to the women’s singles final. American Gauff is to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in today’s title match after pulling through 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in a match that lasted over three-and-a-half hours. Ruud was supposed to be Sinner’s toughest test in Rome since he came back from his three-month doping ban, as the Norwegian came into the match in hot form on clay after winning in
RSS