Last Thursday evening, Russia has overthrown Cyprus (6-0) in the penultimate day of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup. On their side, the Portuguese brought back a draw from Ireland and Germany has already qualified by knocking down Lichtenstein.
Spain made a good operation by doubling Sweden on Thursday evening in the penultimate day of the World Cup 2022 qualifiers, while Croatia remains behind Russia and Portugal has stumbled against Ireland.
The Spaniards did not miss their chance to take the first place in Group B on the field of Greece with one day to go in this qualification phase.
Taking advantage of Sweden’s slip-up, beaten earlier Thursday in Georgia 2-0 despite the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to the national team seven months after his last game, the Spaniards are now one step ahead of their runner-up.
They won thanks to a Sarabia penalty, which was enough to beat the Greeks, who can no longer hope to qualify.
To avoid the play-offs, a draw will be enough for “La Roja” on Sunday (20:45) in Seville against Sweden, who will have to win to get their ticket to the Qatari World Cup.
The case is similar to that of the Spanish neighbor for Portugal, which could not bring back better than a draw from Ireland (0-0).
The Portuguese suffered against the Irish without complex, but this point allows them to pass on the goal difference in front of Serbia, exempted Thursday night, which they will face Sunday (20h45) without the central defender Pepe, excluded after two yellow cards.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s teammates, who were unable to score despite several chances in the second half, will have to be satisfied with a draw to qualify directly for Qatar, where the World Cup will be held in one year (November 21 – December 18), while the victory will be imperative for the Serbians.
Another high-stakes match will take place on Sunday (15:00) in Group H between Croatia, second with 20 points, and Russia, leader with 22 points.
The Russians easily dominated Cyprus 6-0 on Thursday while the finalist of the last World Cup corrected Malta 7-1.
The evening was quieter for Germany, already qualified in group J, which has unfolded against Liechtenstein 9-0.
Behind the Mannschaft, Northern Macedonia took an option to participate in the playoffs by dominating Armenia 5-0.
One point behind, Romania, hung 0-0 by Iceland, can still believe as they will face the modest Liechtenstein on Sunday while North Macedonia will host Iceland.
The table after these matches are:
Groupe A
| pts | J. | G. | N. | P. | +/- | ||
| 1 | Portugal | 17 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | +12 |
| 2 | Serbie | 17 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | +8 |
| 3 | Luxembourg | 9 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | -7 |
| 4 | Irlande | 6 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 5 | Azerbaïdjan | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | -13 |
Groupe B
| pts | J. | G. | N. | P. | +/- | ||
| 1 | Espagne | 16 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | +9 |
| 2 | Suède | 15 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | +7 |
| 3 | Grèce | 9 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 4 | Géorgie | 7 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | -6 |
| 5 | Kosovo | 4 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | -10 |
Groupe C
| pts | J. | G. | N. | P. | +/- | ||
| 1 | Italie | 14 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | +11 |
| 2 | Suisse | 14 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | +9 |
| 3 | Bulgarie | 8 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | -4 |
| 4 | Irlande du Nord | 5 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -2 |
| 5 | Lituanie | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | -14 |
