Dramatic final in Group A. Serbia snatched Portugal’s ticket to the World Cup, which they deemed safe, but turned the game around after a last-minute lightning strike to win 2-1. The starting point was a final: whoever wins drives safely to Em. Portugal should have enjoyed a draw. There was no sign of a careful pulse, and it started in a turbulent manner. Renato Sanchez scored in the second minute to give the hosts an early lead. The former Bayern professional ended abruptly in the middle of the penalty area as Nemanja Goodelj missed the ball in front of his own penalty area against Bernardo Silva.

Display

Half an hour later, Dusan Tadic gave the Serbs hope again. Storm veteran keeper Rui Patricio caught from the edge of the box and the ball bounced over the goal line 1-1. Alexander Mitrovic’s last-minute decision in the game turned into a thriller with a header in favor of the guests from Serbia. Portugal will have to play another group runner-up to play in the final in Qatar.

Spain narrowly beat Sweden 1-0 in the group final for a direct World Cup ticket. With the win, the Scandinavians, who would have jumped to first place in the group, would have advanced to the playoffs. Surprisingly, the Spaniards had more possessions than the guests, but they were always dangerous when playing fast and directly. For example, Emil Forsberg from Leipzig took the lead several times in the first round, but narrowly missed it. At the end of the second half, RB professional Danny Olmo’s long range shot hit the crossbar and Alavaro Morata scored to make it 1-0 for the hosts (86). The Joker Slaton Ibrahimovic also remained goalless for Sweden, who have World Cup chances through the playoffs in early 2022.