Italy and France secured quarter-final places and England bounced back against Greece on UEFA Nations League Matchday 5.
Italy defeated Belgium and France drew with Israel to secure the top two spots in Group A2, while England moved into pole position in Group B2 after triumphing in Athens.
- Belgium 0-1 Italy
Sandro Tonali’s close-range finish booked Italy’s top-two spot in Group A2, ending Belgium’s quarter-final hopes in the process.
The midfielder registered his first Azzurri goal in the 11th minute, applying the finishing touch after some neat link-up play between Nicolò Barella and Giovanni Di Lorenzo.
Belgium upped the tempo after half-time but could not find a way through as Wout Faes grazed the post with a header and Gianluigi Donnarumma made some crucial saves.
- France 0-0 Israel
France qualified for the quarter-finals despite being frustrated by a fine performance from Israel goalkeeper Daniel Peretz in Saint-Denis.
Captain for the night N’Golo Kanté was kept out in the first half and forward Randal Kolo Muani twice came close.
Peretz kept his best save for last, though, reacting superbly to push away a close-range strike from Warren Zaïre-Emery and help Israel to their first point.
- Greece 0-3 England
England took control of Group B2 with an impressive win in Athens, giving them a head-to-head advantage over Greece, who are also on 12 points.
Ollie Watkins tapped in an early opener but England needed three key saves from Jordan Pickford before Jude Bellingham’s shot hit the post and went in off home goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos in the second half.
Curtis Jones flicked in a delightful back-heel to seal the result on his first senior start.
Best of the rest:
- Kazakhstan were relegated to League C after suffering a 2-0 defeat at home to Austria, who moved top of Group B3 through Christoph Baumgartner’s finish and Michael Gregoritsch’s curling free-kick.
- Evan Ferguson earned the Republic of Ireland a 1-0 win in Dublin, cementing Finland’s place at the bottom of Group B2.
- North Macedonia sealed promotion to League B as they defeated Latvia 1-0 in Skopje, Nikola Serafimov scoring the only goal.
All Thursday’s results:
A2: Belgium 0-1 Italy, France 0-0 Israel
B2: Greece 0-3 England, Republic of Ireland 1-0 Finland
B3: Kazakhstan 0-2 Austria, Slovenia 1-4 Norway
C4: Armenia 0-1 Faroe Islands, North Macedonia 1-0 Latvia
Friday’s fixtures:
A1: Portugal vs Poland, Scotland vs Croatia
A4: Denmark vs Spain, Switzerland vs Serbia
C2: Cyprus vs Lithuania, Romania vs Kosovo
C3: Luxembourg vs Bulgaria, Northern Ireland vs Belarus
D1: San Marino vs Gibraltar
Saturday’s fixtures:
A3: Germany vs Bosnia and Herzegovina, Netherlands vs Hungary
B1: Georgia vs Ukraine (18:00), Albania vs Czechia
B4: Montenegro vs Iceland (18:00), Türkiye vs Wales (18:00)
C1: Azerbaijan vs Estonia (15:00), Sweden vs Slovakia
D2: Andorra vs Moldova (18:00).