'Special Goal Scorer'England and Norway, where Harry Kane (Bayern Munich) and Elling Holan (Man City) performed well respectively, have been promoted to the UEFA Nations League A.
England beat Ireland 5-0 at Wembley Stadium in London on the 18th (Korea time) in the sixth leg of Group B of the UEFA Nations League in 2024-2025 season.
England showed off their powerful firepower of eight goals in two games, including a 3-0 victory over Greece three days ago. England (goal difference +13), which had five wins and one loss, was on par with Greece (+7) with 15 points, but was far ahead in goal difference and secured the top spot in Group 2. England succeeded in promotion. First place in each group of League B will be promoted to League A.
England launched a 4-2-3-1 formation. Kane was positioned at the front line. Anthony Gordon, Jude Bellingham and Noni Madueke were placed in the second line. Curtis Jones and Conor Gallagher were in the midfield. The four backs were made up by Lewis Hall - Mark Gehie - Kyle Walker - Valentino Livramento. Jordan Pickford kept the goal.
The fixer was Kane. Kane showed strong patriotism ahead of this November's A-match. When a total of nine players - Declan Rice, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka, Levi Colwill, Trent Alexander Arnold and Aaron Ramsdale - failed to make the team due to injuries and other reasons, Kane publicly expressed his discontent. He thinks England comes first and foremost. England take precedence over clubs. The national team is the most important."
England, who finished 0-0 in the first half, took the lead in the eighth minute of the second half with Kane's penalty. Kane neatly scored Bellingham's penalty. It was Kane's 69th A-match goal. Kane played 103 A matches. In the process, England gained a numerical advantage as they even left. England, where Kane opened, continued the goal relay.
In the 10th minute of the second half, Gordon finished the cross from the right with a volley shot to open the score. It was his A-match debut goal. In the 13th minute of the second half, Guehi changed the direction of Madueke's corner to a header, and Gallagher, who was rushing, finished it. As expected, it was his A match debut goal. England continued their momentum with Taylor Harwood Bellis, Anthony Rogers, Dominic Solanke and Bruce Bowen.
I didn't know how to cool down England's scoring. Bowen, who received Bellingham's pass in the 30th minute of the second half, scored with a non-stop shot. Four minutes later, House Bellis, who also received Bellingham's fantastic cross, shook the Irish net with a header. Both players were thrilled to score their A-match debut goals.
England, where Thomas Tuchel, who coached Kim Min-jae in Bayern Munich, will take office next year, has successfully completed the system of acting coach Lee Kasley.
Norway has also secured promotion to League A. On the same day, Norway won 5-0 against Kazakhstan on its home turf. Norway, which added three points, secured the top spot in Group B with 13 points, beating Austria (11 points). This is the first time Norway has moved up to League A.
Norway, which needed a win to secure promotion on its own, had a 'monster'Holan. Holan continued his remarkable scoring ability in the national team and honored his country. Holan scored back-to-back goals in the 23rd and 37th minutes of the first half. Norway were outscored 3-0 in the first half with another goal from Aleksander Sørlotte.
Norway's offensive continued in the second half. It was Holan again this time. In the 26th minute of the second half, he shook the net with a right-footed shot from the penalty arc to complete a hat trick. Five minutes later, Antonio Nusa scored a netting goal.
Holan has scored as many as seven goals in six Nations League games. Holan, who had no connection to the international stage, achieved promotion to the Nations League A with his amazing scoring ability.
France, which has already confirmed its advance to the quarter-finals in Group A, secured a 3-1 victory over Italy in the final six at Stadio San Siro in Milan, Italy. France and Italy were four wins, one draw and one loss, but France (+6), which is slightly ahead of Italy (+5), rose to the top of the group. The team that secured the first and second place in each group of League A will advance to the quarterfinals.
In France, midfielder Adrien Rabiot became the top contributor to the victory. He scored multiple goals in the second minute of the first half and the 20th minute of the second half to give France three points.
Israel defeated Belgium 1-0 but failed to avoid relegation from League B. The two teams also had one win, one draw and four losses, but Belgium (-3) was ahead of Israel (-8) in goal difference. Israel had no choice but to accept League B in tears.
vanbasten@sportschosun.com
