With no top-flight club football competition in Europe, all eyes turned elsewhere this weekend, bringing the spotlight to international football. It was thrilling to witness players donning their national team kits and showcasing their talents on the international stage.
One of the most intriguing aspects for fans is witnessing club teammates facing off as international rivals. This dynamic adds an extra layer of excitement to the game, as familiar faces become opponents on the field.
Moreover, observing players adapt or readapt to different systems, alongside teammates and managers undergoing similar adjustments, adds depth to the experience. It’s fascinating to see how players seamlessly transition between club and international football, showcasing their versatility and adaptability on a global stage.
A summary of the international football results:
๐ง๐ท Brazil secured a victory against ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ England at Wembley.
๐บ๐ธ The United States narrowly advanced to the CONCACAF Nations League final against ๐ฏ๐ฒ Jamaica and then convincingly won the final against ๐ฒ๐ฝ Mexico.
๐จ๐ฆ Canada and ๐จ๐ท Costa Rica confirmed their places in the 2024 Copa America.
๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ท๓ ฌ๓ ณ๓ ฟ Wales, ๐ต๐ฑ Poland, ๐บ๐ฆ Ukraine, ๐ฎ๐ธ Iceland, ๐ฌ๐ช Georgia, and ๐ฌ๐ท Greece are each one win away from securing a place in the 2024 Euro.
Thursday, March 21, 2024
AFC WCQ
Australia, Iraq, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar maintained their perfect winning starts.
Group A : Qatar (9) | India (4) | Kuwait (3) | Afghanistan (1)
Qatar secured their third win by defeating Kuwait with a score of three goals to none, while India played a goalless draw with bottom-ranked Afghanistan.
Group B : Japan (9) | Syria (4) | North Korea (3) | Myanmar (1)
Japan clinched their third consecutive win by defeating North Korea, while Myanmar and Syria settled for a 1-all draw, sharing the points.
Group C : South Korea (7) | Thailand (4) | China (4) | Singapore (1)
There were no victors as South Korea dropped points for the first time in a 1-all draw against Thailand, while Singapore and China finished with a 2-2 draw.
Group D : Oman (6) | Kyrgyzstan (6) | Malaysia (6) | Chinese Taipei (0)
Malaysia lost to Oman, while Kyrgyzstan beat Chinese Taipei, resulting in a three-way tie in points with Oman, Kyrgyzstan, and Malaysia each on 6 points.
Group E : Iran (7) | Uzbekistan (7) | Hong Kong (1) | Turkmenistan (1)
Iran and Uzbekistan secured wins to maintain their lead over Turkmenistan and Hong Kong.
Group F : Iraq (9) | Indonesia (4) | Vietnam (3) | Philippines (1)
Iraq remained perfect with three wins out of three, defeating the Philippines, while Indonesia also secured a win against Vietnam. Both games ended 1-0.
Group G : Saudi Arabia (9) | Tajikistan (4) | Jordan (4) | Pakistan (0)
Saudi Arabia secured their third win by defeating Tajikistan 1-0, while Jordan won 3-0 against Pakistan.
Group H : United Arab Emirates (9) | Bahrain (6) | Yemen (3) | Nepal (0)
The United Arab Emirates leads with 3 wins after defeating Yemen 2-1, while Bahrain also defeated Nepal 5-0.
Group I : Australia (9) | Palestine (4) | Lebanon (2) | Bangladesh (1)
Australia won their third match by defeating Lebanon 2-0, while Palestine thrashed Bangladesh 5-0.
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EURO QUALIFIER PLAYOFF ROUND SEMIFINALS
It wasn’t a feel-good story for the underdogs. Of the 6 nations that were seeking to qualify for their first-ever Euro, only one (Georgia) advanced to the qualifier playoff final. They achieved this by eliminating one of the 6, Luxembourg.
Greece, Poland, Wales, and Iceland secured wins by a significant margin to advance to the semifinals.
Ukraine was the lone semifinalist to secure victory by a narrow margin, with a 2-1 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
๐ต๐ฑ Poland 5-1 ๐ช๐ช Estonia
๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ท๓ ฌ๓ ณ๓ ฟ Wales 4-1 ๐ซ๐ฎ Finland
๐ง๐ฆ Bosnia and Herzegovina 1-2 ๐บ๐ฆ Ukraine
๐ฎ๐ฑ Israel 1-4 ๐ฎ๐ธ Iceland
๐ฌ๐ช Georgia 2-0 ๐ฑ๐บ Luxembourg
๐ฌ๐ท Greece 5-0 ๐ฐ๐ฟ Kazakhstan
There is a place in the 2024 Euro for Poland or Wales, Iceland or Ukraine, and Georgia or Greece.
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CONCACAF NATIONS LEAGUE SEMIFINALS
๐บ๐ธ United States 3-1 ๐ฏ๐ฒ Jamaica
๐ต๐ฆ Panama 0-3 ๐ฒ๐ฝ Mexico
Jamaica took the lead in the first minute and seemed poised to enter the final before conceding in the final seconds of the match, leading to extra time. In extra time, they fell behind by two goals, ultimately losing 3-1 to the United States. The United States are once again in the CONCACAF Nations League final, aiming to defend their title for the third consecutive time. Their opponent will be Mexico.
Mexico, on the other hand, had a smoother path to the final. They defeated Panama 3-0 within regulation time, avoiding any dramatic moments.
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Friday, March 22, 2024
Nigeria secures a 2-1 victory over Ghana.
Chile triumphs over Albania with a scoreline of 3-0.
Scotland perhaps deserved more from the game than a 4-0 defeat to the Netherlands.
Colombia defeats Spain, with the goal scored by Daniel Munoz and assisted by Luis Diaz.
Argentina delivers a dominant performance, clinching a 3-0 win against El Salvador.
RESULTS FROM SOME INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY MATCHES PLAYED ON THE DAY:
๐ณ๐ฌ Nigeria 2-1 ๐ฌ๐ญ Ghana
๐ธ๐ณ Senegal 3-0 ๐ฌ๐ฆ Gabon
๐ณ๐ฑ Netherlands 4-0 ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ณ๓ ฃ๓ ด๓ ฟ Scotland
๐ฆ๐ฑ Albania 0-3 ๐จ๐ฑ Chile
๐ช๐ธ Spain 0-1 ๐จ๐ด Colombia
๐ณ๐ด Norway 1-2 ๐จ๐ฟ Czechia
๐ช๐ฌ Egypt 1-0 New Zealand
๐ฒ๐ฆ Morocco 1-0 ๐ฆ๐ด Angola
๐ฉ๐ฟ Algeria 3-2 ๐ง๐ด Bolivia
๐ธ๐ป El Salvador 0-3 ๐ฆ๐ท Argentina
๐ต๐ช Peru 2-0 ๐ณ๐ฎ Nicaragua
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CONCACAF World Cup Qualification – First Round
๐ฆ๐ฎ Anguilla 0-0 ๐น๐จ Turks and Caicos Islands
๐ป๐ฎ US Virgin Islands 1-1 ๐ป๐ฌ British Virgin Islands
There is still the return fixture (March 26, 2024) to decide which two nations will go into the second round. One of the Virgin Islands will be in Group E; ๐ป๐ฎ US Virgin Islands 1-1 ๐ป๐ฌ British Virgin Islands, and it will be either ๐ฆ๐ฎ Anguilla or ๐น๐จ Turks and Caicos Islands in Group F.
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Saturday, March 23, 2024
RESULTS FROM SOME INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLY MATCHES PLAYED ON THE DAY:
๐จ๐ฎ Ivory Coast 2-2 ๐ง๐ฏ Benin
๐ฎ๐ช Ireland 0-0 ๐ง๐ช Belgium
๐ฉ๐ฐ Denmark 0-0 ๐จ๐ญ Switzerland
๐ธ๐ฐ Slovakia 0-2 ๐ฆ๐น Austria
๐ซ๐ท France 0-2 ๐ฉ๐ช Germany
๐น๐ณ Tunisia 0-0 ๐ญ๐ท Croatia**
๐ฒ๐ผ Malawi 0-4 ๐ฐ๐ช Kenya
๐ฟ๐ฒ Zambia 2-2 ๐ฟ๐ผ Zimbabwe**
(** = won through penalty shootout)
The heavyweight matchups saw France hosting Germany, and England hosting Brazil. In both games, the visitors emerged victorious.
Germany secured a 2-0 win, initiated by Florian Writz’s goal in the first 30 seconds.
In a match between England and Brazil at Wembley Stadium, 17-year-old Endrick entered as a substitute and scored the only goal of the game, giving Brazil a 1-0 victory. Despite missing a chance to score a brace at the end due to lack of composure, Endrick’s performance highlights Brazil’s promising young talent.
In another match, Evan Ferguson’s penalty kick was saved, denying Ireland what could have been the only goal against Belgium, resulting in a goalless draw.
The current Africa Cup of Nations title holders came from behind twice to salvage a 2-2 draw against Benin, avoiding defeat.
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CONCACAF NATION LEAGUE PLAYOFF PROMOTION:
๐จ๐ฆ Canada 2-0 ๐น๐น Trinidad and Tobago
๐จ๐ท Costa Rica 3-1 ๐ญ๐ณ Honduras
Canada and Costa Rica picked up wins to qualify and complete the list of six teams from the CONCACAF region who will join the 10 CONMEBOL nations in the 2024 Copa America.
THE 2024 COPA AMERICA GROUPS:
Group A: ๐ฆ๐ท Argentina, ๐ต๐ช Peru, ๐จ๐ฑ Chile, and ๐จ๐ฆ Canada
Group B: ๐ฒ๐ฝ Mexico, ๐ช๐จ Ecuador, ๐ป๐ช Venezuela, and ๐ฏ๐ฒ Jamaica
Group C: ๐บ๐ธ United States, ๐บ๐พ Uruguay, ๐ต๐ฆ Panama, and ๐ง๐ด Bolivia
Group D: ๐ง๐ท Brazil, ๐จ๐ด Colombia, ๐ต๐พ Paraguay, ๐จ๐ท Costa Rica
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Sunday, March 24, 2024
CONCACAF NATIONS LEAGUE
(semifinal)
๐ฏ๐ฒ Jamaica 0-1 ๐ต๐ฆ Panama
In the CONCACAF Nations League semifinal, Jamaica faced off against Panama, with the latter emerging victorious with a narrow 1-0 win. Dexter Lembikisa found the back of the net for Panama, scoring the game’s lone goal in the 42nd minute. As a result, Jamaica secured third place in the tournament.
(final)
๐บ๐ธ United States 2-0 ๐ฒ๐ฝ Mexico
โDos a ceroโ
In the CONCACAF Nations League final, the United States faced off against Mexico, securing a 2-0 victory. This marks the third CONCACAF Nations League final, with the United States emerging victorious in all three, defeating Mexico on two occasions.
The breakthrough came in the 45th minute when Tyler Adams scored a stunning goal, putting United States in a 1-0 lead at halftime. The lead was extended in the 63rd minute with Giovanni Reyna finding the back of the net. Neither of the goalscorers played the full 90 minutes.
The United States has extended their unbeaten streak against Mexico to 7 straight meetings, with 5 wins and 2 draws. This remarkable run marks the longest unbeaten streak in the history of the rivalry.
