The qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup are probably the best test for the national teams, on the eve of Euro 2020 which is already only a few weeks away. But how did the contending teams for the trophy perform in these matches? England, Germany and Italy proved a pretty convincing form, but we can not say the same for the Spaniards led by Luis Enrique.
The Spanish national team failed to go more than a draw at home, in the face of a relatively modest team such as Greece. The owners of the house found the net way first, with Alvaro Morata in the 34th minute. But the Greeks were forgiven a penalty converted by Tasos Bakasetas to equalize the score, and the meeting closed at 1-1.
England meanwhile defeated the San Marino Amateurs 5-0, doing the job. This can not be considered a real test for the "3 Lions", due to the rather weak opponent. However, the Southgate team proved that they take things quite seriously, a sign of commitment that is expected to appear at Euro 2020 as well.
Germany defeated Iceland 3-0. Joachim Löw's national team looked quite confident and had no difficult moments during the match. Leon Goretzka, Kai Havertz and klkay Gündoğan were the goalscorers for the Panzers.
And Italy achieved a clear victory in the figures 2-0 against Northern Ireland, in the first act of these qualifiers. it was Domenico Berardi who scored the first goal, giving the "Azure" the advantage. The response from Northern Ireland never came, and Ciro Immobile scored the second goal before the break. In the second half Northern Ireland tried several times to put the Italians in trouble but without creating anything concrete.
Meanwhile, a few days ago it was France, which in the first match of these qualifiers did not go more than a draw in the figures 1-1 against Ukraine. It remains to be seen whether the "big" teams will show the same fluctuations during Euro 2020 in the summer.
