By Razeen Gutta
The international break featured loads of goal-mouth action thus far, but it is Cristiano Ronaldo’s finishing, qualification and decision-making that has grabbed the headlines.
The 38-year-old was the star in Portugal’s 3-2 win over Slovakia on Friday, netting a brace to register his sixth goal in six qualifiers this campaign and helping his team book their spot at Euro 2024.
The all-time great made his fans even happier post-match when he announced that he hopes to be available for the major tournament in Germany next year.
“I hope I will be at Euro 2024 as there is still a lot of time left. I hope I won’t have any problem or injury, I hope to play,” the Portuguese captain said, per Fabrizio Romano.
In Friday’s other games, France and Belgium sealed qualification too, as Kylian Mbappe netted twice to help Les Bleus to a 2-1 win over Netherlands while the Belgians beat Austria 3-2.
On Saturday, Denmark beat Kazakhstan 3-1 to go level on points with Slovenia at the top of their group, with Manchester United duo Rasmus Højlund and Christian Eriksen both grabbing assists.
Ahead of their clash with England on Tuesday, Italy stayed on track of their qualifying campaign with a 4-0 win at home to Malta.
The Azzuri are now on 10 points in second, level with Ukraine who beat North Macedonia 2-0.
England, who beat Australia 1-0 in a friendly on Friday, sit atop the group on an unbeaten 13 points.
On Sunday, Spain visits Norway while Wales takes on Croatia in the pick of the qualifying action. Kosovo versus Israel remains postponed due to the security situation in the region.
Pictured above: Cristiano Ronaldo
Image source: @big_aak
