EURO 2020 qualifying: England's Sterling and France shine
Friday, March 22, 2019
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France eased past Moldova while Raheem Sterling struck an England hat-trick against the Czech Republic.
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GROUP A
Bulgaria 1-1 Montenegro
Todor Nedelev's late penalty ensured a share of the spoils in Sofia. A fine Stefan Mugoša goal five minutes after the interval looked to be the difference, before Vladimir Jovović was adjudged to have fouled Stanislav Kostov with eight minutes remaining.
England 5-0 Czech Republic
Raheem Sterling scored a hat-trick as England eased past Czech Republic at Wembley Stadium. The Manchester City forward opened the scoring in the first half, his close-range finish followed by Harry Kane's penalty. Sterling completed his treble in the second period, before Tomáš Kalas' late own-goal compounded a difficult night for the visitors.
GROUP B
Portugal 0-0 Ukraine
Portugal failed to score for the first time in 19 home matches as Andriy Shevchenko's resolute Ukraine contained Cristiano Ronaldo on his international return in Lisbon. Heroic visiting goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov's string of impressive saves also denied Pepe and André Silva.
Luxembourg 2-1 Lithuania
Gerson Rodrigues scored a stunning winner as Luxembourg came from behind to beat Lithuania. Fiodor Černych swept the visitors in front but Leandro Barreiro Martins levelled from Vincent Thill's through ball on the stroke of half-time and Rodrigues completed the turnaround with an outstanding curling effort early in the second half.
GROUP H
Moldova 1-4 France
Antoine Griezmann starred as France made the perfect start in Moldova. The UEFA EURO 2016 top scorer volleyed in Paul Pogba's cross, before his corner was converted by Raphaël Varane. Olivier Giroud and Kylian Mbappé made it four, before Vladimir Ambros grabbed a late consolation.
Andorra 0-2 Iceland
The visitors were made to work hard for Erik Hamrén's first win as coach, Birkir Bjarnason heading the opener from a corner midway through the first half and a smart finish from substitute Vidar Kjartansson wrapping up the points with ten minutes left.
Albania 0-2 Turkey
Turkey secured a comfortable victory in Shkoder against an Albania side who rarely threatened the visitors' goal. Burak Yılmaz opened the scoring with a neat finish in the 21st minute, with Hakan Çalhanoğlu doubling the advantage just after the interval.
