More UEFA Nations League action continued on Tuesday, with a handful of countries hitting the pitch.
Here is what went down.
Spain dig deep to beat Serbia
Scorers: Laporte 5′, Morata 65′, Baena 77′. Red: Pavlovic 76′.
EURO 2024 winners Spain had to dig deep to beat 10-man Serbia at home by 3-0.
Things got off to a flier when Pedro Porro registered his first goal contribution for the national team. The right-back’s cross soared towards the back post and Aymeric Laporte headed home.
However, despite the early opener, Spain failed to capitalise. Serbia’s attack, led by Aleksandar Mitrović, could only muster up one shot during the first half.
Alvaro Morata had a chance to double the lead around the hour mark but skied his penalty well over the net. He’s missed his last three attempts from the spot for club and country.
Fortunately for him, a second opportunity arrived minutes later and his one-time curler found the back of the net.
Things turned worse for the visitors when Strahinja Pavlović was shown a straight red for a challenge on Mikel Oyarzabal. Alex Baena then stepped up and easily converted the subsequent free-kick to seal the victory.
Scotland frustrate CR7 and Portugal
Scotland perfectly executed their defensive game plan to hold Portugal to a goalless draw.
Cristiano Ronaldo led his team inside a Hampden Park that echoed boos every time he touched the ball. The captain was a shadow of himself on the night, though. Weak strikes fall short and headers were wasted as Portugal dominated the ball.
Scotland couldn’t control the game due to their 30% possession and instead consistently frustrated their opponents. Scott McTominay was closest to opening the scoring, but his header was easy for Diogo Costa to handle.
The hosts continued to pack the box with eight or nine players at a time in the second half. Portugal were dull and lacking creativity with young Francisco Conceição offering the only threats.
None of the changes off the bench in Rafael Leao, Bernardo Silva or Ruben Neves impacted the game either. Meanwhile, brief opportunities against the run of play saw McTominay fall short on two more occasions.
No goals on the night after only four shots on target combined saw the points split. It’s Scotland’s first point, while Portugal’s perfect run is over.
Poland and Croatia play out a thriller
Scorers: Zielinski5′, Zalewski 45′, Szymański 68′; Sosa 19′, Sučić 24, Baturina 26′. Red: Livakovic 76′.
It was a dramatic night in Poland, as the hosts rallied to a 3-3 draw with 10-man Croatia.
Despite no Robert Lewandowski in the starting lineup, the hosts opened the scoring when Piotr Zielinski fired home a curling effort after less than 10 minutes.
However, Croatia then clicked into gear, and three goals in seven minutes turned things around.
Borna Sosa scored a stunning volley from outside the box into the right side of the net before Petar Sucic and Marturina swapped set each other up in almost identical fashion.
Poland turned things 3-2 just before the half-time whistle as Croatia’s defence was caught sleeping, and Nicola Zalewski slotted home into the far corner from inside the box.
The goals largely dried up in the second half, but a tired Croatian defence again collapsed, allowing the hosts to draw level via Sebastian Szymański’s curling effort near the edge of the box.
The dying moments turned chaotic when goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic made a studs-up challenge on substitute Lewandowski, but despite Croatia going down to 10 men as a result, the points were still split.
NI’s young star inspires Bulgaria rout
Scorers: Price 15′, 29′, 81′, Mitov 32′ (OG), Magennis 89′
Northern Ireland picked up a clutch 5-0 win over Bulgaria thanks to the efforts of budding star Isaac Price.
The 21-year-old Standard Liege midfielder registered his third and fourth goals for the national team after pouncing on a loose ball not once but twice in the first half an hour.
Such a scoreline boosted Northern Ireland’s confidence, and a shot from Brodie Spencer later bounced off goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov for 3-0.
Bulgaria had a chance to boost their own confidence heading into the second half but captain Kiril Despodov was denied from the penalty spot by the woodwork.
Momentum continued favouring the hosts and Conor Bradley thought he had joined in on the action only to see his goal ruled out for offside.
Price, however, then ensured the scoreline read 4-0 when he secured his hat-trick with a long-range strike from outside the box.
A late goal from Josh Magennis then made it five goals on a five star showing from the hosts.
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