Portugal beat Poland 5-1 this Friday with a spectacular second half and secured qualification for the quarter-finals of the Football Nations League, while Scotland still dreams of qualifying.
The ‘quinas’ team, winner of the first edition of the competition in 2019, returned to winning ways in the game of the fifth round of Group A1 and mathematically secured first place, with 13 points, which gives it the status of seed in the ‘ rooms’.
Scotland recorded its first victory (1-0), against Croatia, and left second place in the same group open, the same happening in Group A4, in which Spain secured first place with the victory (2-1). in Denmark, which in the last round goes to Serbia to defend second place against its direct rival.
At Estádio do Dragão, in Porto, the team coached by Roberto Martinez, who had conceded their first points against the Scots in October, was at a weak level in the first half, but appeared transformed after the restart.
Rafael Leão, in the 59th minute, Cristiano Ronaldo, in the 72nd minute, from the penalty spot, and in the 87th minute, with a ‘bicycle’, Bruno Fernandes, with a ‘bomb’, in the 80th minute, and Pedro Neto, in the 83rd minute, scored the goals Portuguese, against Dominik Marczuk’s goal, at 89.
In Glasgow, Scotland debuted by winning in the Nations League with a late goal, through John McGinn, in the 86th minute, against a Croatian team reduced to 10 units after the 44th minute, due to the expulsion of Petar Sucic.
In the sixth and final round, Croatia, second, with seven points, receives Portugal and needs just one point to guarantee qualification to the quarter-finals, while Scotland, fourth, with four, has to win at home against Poland, third with four and no longer having a chance of reaching the knockout stages, and hoping for the Croatians’ defeat.
Results of the remaining groups
In Group A4, Spain, holder of the title, which was already classified, mathematically secured first place, with a 2-1 victory in Copenhagen, Denmark, second place, with seven, while Switzerland (fourth, with two) and Serbia (third, with five) drew 1-1.
Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring for the Spaniards, in the 15th minute, and Ayoze Pérez increased the difference, in the 58th minute, with Gustav Isaksen, in the 84th minute, scoring for the Nordics, whose ‘eleven’ included Benfica defender Bah and Sporting midfielder Hjulmand .
In Zurich, Benfica player Zeki Amdouni started and scored for Switzerland in the 78th minute, but Aleksa Terzic equalized in the 88th, condemning the hosts to relegation to League B and leaving the Serbs with the possibility of qualifying for the ‘quarters’ , if on Monday they win against Denmark in the sixth and final round.
In Group C2, the game between Romania and Kosovo in Bucharest was not completed, after the Kosovars left the field in protest in stoppage time, with the game at 0–0, as local fans began chanting Serbia’s name.
The draw guarantees Romania’s promotion to League B, in a group in which Cyprus secured third place, with six points, and maintenance with a 2-1 home victory over Lithuania, which sentenced the Baltics to fourth. place, still without points and at risk of relegation to League D.
In Group C3, Northern Ireland beat Belarus at home, 2-0, and remained in first place, with 10 points, two more than Bulgaria, who triumphed by the smallest margin (1-0), with a goal from Casa Pia midfielder Andrian Kraev, in Luxembourg, last and already relegated to League D.
Finally, in Group D1, San Marino drew 1-1 against Gibraltar and maintained their chances of securing promotion to League C if they beat Liechtenstein in the final round.
