Man United Players On September International Duty, Part 3 - Stretty Rant (original) (raw)
More Man United players were in action for their national sides this Sunday and here is what you need to know.
Portugal v Scotland
These Portugal matches keep getting Man United fans some good news. In their recent win against Croatia, it was Diogo Dalot who scored alongside Cristiano Ronaldo to seal the win, while this time it was all about current or former Man United players, in their match against Scotland. Portugal defeated the Scots at home, but not before having to dig deep. Former Man United midfielder Scott McTominay opened the scoring just seven minutes in, giving some early hopes to the visitors that their poor form will be eradicated. But then, in the second half, it was Bruno Fernandes who equalised after 54 minutes, to capitalise on his good performance and get Portugal in the match. Finally, after 88 minutes, Cristiano Ronaldo scored yet again to make it 2-1 and keep Portugal on 100 per cent of match wins in this new Nations League edition. This time, Diogo Dalot did not start the match, but he did come on after 76 minutes instead of Nelson Semedo.
Denmark v Serbia
Denmark and Serbia played just couple of months ago, in the same Euro 2024 group as did England, and this time we got a better match. While in Munich it ended 0-0 after poor performances everywhere, this time Denmark defeated Serbia 2-0, getting their second Nations League win in as many matches. Christian Eriksen was expectedly part of the starting 11, playing as one of the two attacking midfielders behind Yusuf Poulsen in a 3-4-2-1 system. Eriksen did not get to make any assists nor did he score in those 68 minutes he spent on the pitch, but he was all over the pitch, trying to make things happen. This was not his most effective performance, but he did get some important minutes playing for his national team after not getting many opportunities in Erik Ten Hag’s team so far.
Sweden v Estonia
Sweden have had their fair share of troubles in recent years and that coincided with Victor Lindelöf becoming their captain. They failed to qualify for Euro 2024 and they also slid down towards the C division of the Nations League. Now, in their campaign opener against Estonia, Sweden were without Lindelöf, who recently got injured and was not available for matches against Brighton and Liverpool. He probably would not have played those matches either way, but he would probably have been called up for the national team. Still, even without him, Sweden comfortably defeated Estonia 3-0 in which former Man United winger Anthony Elanga played for the last 10 minutes or so.
Gibraltar v Liechtenstein
And finally, we will mention James Scanlon again, the Man United youngster who earned another cap for the national team of Gibraltar. They drew 2-2 at home against Liechtenstein and it was Scanlon who managed to get on the scoresheet, but his late goal was not the match-winning one after all. Gibraltar got themselves into an early lead via Liam Walker. The visitors equalised through Saglam, but after Walker failed to convert a penalty after 82 minutes, it was Scanlon himself who had put Gibraltar ahead in the seventh minute of stoppage. Still, that was not enough for the hosts who conceded in 104th minute from the penalty spot, to miss out on winning in their first Nations League match.