As the Nations League concluded, Mason Mount got on the scoresheet for England, Jorginho and Emerson helped Italy get the win they needed to qualify for the finals and Ethan Ampadu earned promotion with Wales.
Mount was the only Chelsea player in the starting line-up for England against Iceland at Wembley, with Ben Chilwell sitting the game out after picking up a knock in their last match and Tammy Abraham coming off the bench in the second half, but it was a memorable night for the Blues midfielder.
The 21-year-old partnered his close friend and former Chelsea Academy team-mate Declan Rice in midfield for the Three Lions and just four minutes after he had finished congratulating Rice on heading in the opening goal, Mount showed great composure to seize on a loose ball in the box, wrong-foot the defenders and slot home England’s second with his left foot.
Two goals by Phil Foden after Abraham had been introduced and Iceland had a man sent off made the final score 4-0, but England’s chances of qualifying for the Nations League finals had already been ended before this game.
Elsewhere in Group 2 of the top division, Andreas Christensen was also denied a place in the finals as Denmark’s hopes were ended by defeat in Belgium. Christensen played throughout as the Danes put up a strong fight, going in at half-time level 1-1, but an action-packed second half with a goal for each side in the last three minutes resulted in a 4-2 win for Belgium.
Two Chelsea players who did book a place in the Nations League finals with their country tonight were Jorginho and Emerson, who both started the 2-0 win away at Bosnia & Herzegovina which sealed qualification for Italy.
The Blues duo played the full 90 minutes as a goal in each half continued the Azzurri’s impressive run of form and ensured they would finish one point ahead of the Netherlands in Group 1. That means Italy will join France, Spain and Belgium in the four-team finals.
There was also a good finish to this Nations League campaign for Ethan Ampadu, as he started in the centre of midfield again for Wales and helped them secure promotion to the top flight.
Ampadu, who is spending this season on loan with Sheffield United, picked up a booking against Finland in Cardiff, but won’t be too bothered as an early red card for the Finns but Wales in the driving seat and they took full advantage to win 3-1, guaranteeing first place in Group 4 of League B.
Thiago Silva wore the captain’s armband for Brazil as he resumed his old partnership at centre-back with former Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Marquinhos, this time at international level.
It was a good night all round for Thiago Silva and the Selecao, as they continued their 100 per cent record in the South American section of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup, leaving them two points clear of Argentina in top spot in the table.
There was a clean sheet for the defender, too, as Brazil won 2-0 against Uruguay, who were reduced to 10 men by a red card for Edinson Cavani after the damage was already done. So accomplished was the performance of Thiago Silva and his fellow defenders that Uruguay failed to register a single shot on target during the match, although they did have a late consolation goal ruled out for offside.