Portugal 3:0 Sweden
Goals from Manchester City’s midfielder Bernardo Silva and a brace from new Liverpool striker Diogo Jota gave Portugal a comfortable 3-0 win over Sweden in the Nations League on Wednesday as the hosts made light of the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo due to a positive COVID-19 test.
Silva registered himself in the 21st minute from a counter-attack as Portugal won the ball back in the middle of the field. Jota then found Silva in the penalty area with a precise pass for the midfielder to perfectly finish with a first time shot.
Jota also got on the scoresheet just before halftime, smashing home a Joao Cancelo’s cross from deep on the right to make it 2-0. He also added a superb third with a solo run that ended with a thumping shot in the 71st minute.
With 10 points from four games, Portugal top Group 2 in League A on goal difference ahead of France, who beat Croatia 2-1 in Zagreb.
The Swedes are bottom of the group after slumping to four straight defeats.
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Kylian Mbappe scores the winner as France repeat the 2018 World Cup feat against Croatia
World champions France stretched their unbeaten run against Croatia to eight games after Kylian Mbappe scored a late winner in their 2-1 win in their Nations League top-tier Group 3 match on Wednesday.
The result left France second in the group on 10 points from four games, behind Portugal on goal difference after the European champions brushed aside Sweden 3-0. Croatia have three points and the Swedes none.
Antoine Griezmann got France started after he scored in the eighth minute to put them in the lead when he drilled the ball home after Domagoj Vida failed to clear a Ferland Mendy’s cross from the right.
Croatia midfielder Nikola Vlasic equalised in the 65th but France won it late on.
It was a crafty three-touch move as Pogba found Lucas Digne with a long pass from inside his own half and the left back volleyed a cross into the penalty area for Mbappe to slide in and steer the ball past Keeper Dominik Livakovic.
Iceland 1-2 Belgium: Lukaku scores twice as the Belgians win
Romelu Lukaku, who was the stand-in captain for Belgium on Wednesday night, scored a brace as the visitors got back to winning ways with a 2-1 away victory over Iceland in the Nations League.
It only took Lukaku 10 minutes to open the scoring and added a penalty before half-time after Birkir Saevarsson had levelled for Iceland.
Belgium moved to the top of the League A Group 2 standings following England’s defeat at home to Denmark that dropped Gareth Southgate’s side down to third.
Other Wednesday results
- Finland 1-0 Republic of Ireland
- Lithuania 0-0 Albania
- Belarus 2-0 Kazakhstan
- Bulgaria 0-1 Wales
- England 0-1 Denmark
- Estonia 1-1 Armenia
- Greece 0-0 Kosovo
- Moldova 0-4 Slovenia
- North Macedonia 1-1 Georgia
- Romania 0-1 Austria
- Russia 0-0 Hungary
- Scotland 1-0 Czech Republic
- Slovakia 2-3 Israel
- Turkey 2-2 Serbia
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