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Spain managed to salvage a late equalizer against the 10 men of the Netherlands, resulting in a 2-2 draw that underscored their two-year unbeaten record and gave the reigning champions a slight edge in their Nations League quarter-final matchup.
In a dramatic finish, substitute Mikel Merino, who has been playing as a makeshift striker for Arsenal, demonstrated his scoring prowess for the national team by netting a close-range goal just three minutes into stoppage time.
The Dutch made a valiant comeback after falling behind early in the match, answering with goals from Cody Gakpo and Tijjani Reijnders. However, their hopes were dashed when young defender Jorrel Hato received a red card for a dangerous tackle with just eight minutes remaining.
Spain’s scoring opportunity arose in the ninth minute, initiated by Nico Williams after a rapid start. A defensive error by 19-year-old Hato was seized upon by 17-year-old Lamine Yamal, who assisted Pedri before Williams delivered a precise finish into the net.
Germany also overcame an early setback to claim a 2-1 victory over Italy at San Siro, with Leon Goretzka scoring the decisive goal with 14 minutes left on the clock.
Initially, Italy struck first in the ninth minute following an organized counterattack, where Nicolo Barella set up Matteo Politano, who then set up a chance for Sandro Tonali to score from close range.
Germany leveled the score shortly after halftime when a well-placed ball from Joshua Kimmich found substitute Tim Kleindienst, who scored on his first touch with a powerful header past Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Italy’s manager, Luciano Spalletti, noted after the match, “There were moments where we paid too high a price throughout the match,” highlighting defensive gaps that allowed Germany to find space in the box.
Croatia clinched a notable 2-0 victory over France, thanks to goals from Ante Budimir and Ivan Perisic. Despite the return of Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé, the French side struggled to convert opportunities into goals.
Croatia’s early momentum was hampered when Andrej Kramaric’s penalty was saved by Mike Maignan. Nevertheless, Croatia dominated the proceedings and their victory could have been even larger given their performance.
Denmark found success in their quarter-final first leg against Portugal, winning 1-0 at Parken Stadium, thanks to a late goal from striker Rasmus Højlund.
Højlund, who had been in a scoring drought for Manchester United, scored the decisive goal in the 78th minute, helping to offset Christian Eriksen’s earlier penalty miss, which had been saved by the Portuguese goalkeeper.
Meanwhile, in the Nations League playoff, the Republic of Ireland rallied back from an early deficit to prevail 2-1 against Bulgaria. Midfielder Finn Azaz scored his first international goal, followed by Matt Doherty, who netted the winner shortly before halftime.
Ireland began the match in Plovdiv with a setback, conceding an early goal to Marin Petkov. However, with Azaz quickly leveling the score and Doherty completing the comeback, the team took a significant step toward maintaining their league status ahead of the second leg in Dublin.
Ukraine staged a comeback to defeat Belgium 3-1 in the first leg of their playoff, putting themselves in a strong position to achieve promotion to the competition’s upper tier. An initial goal from Romelu Lukaku was answered by Oleksiy Hutsulyak, Vladyslav Vanat, and Bournemouth’s Ilya Zabarnyi.
Ukraine’s strong start included forcing Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois into action on several occasions. Despite Lukaku scoring just before halftime, Ukraine’s resurgence in the second half highlighted their potential as they scored three unanswered goals.
With Belgium’s disappointing performance in this matchup, the team is faced with the prospect of being relegated from the competition’s top tier for the first time since its inception.
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www.theguardian.com