The Uefa Nations matchday 1 matches were concluded on Saturday night, the competition has produced moments and results that can't be overlooked. The competition started on the first of June and we have seen 25 matches played in total by 50 countries, we should have had more but Russia's ban from the competition and Ukraine qualifiers caused the difference.
Expectations were high, it was time for players to fly their country flag high just like we saw at the club level. While some players did the job for their countries, many couldn't have an impact despite having a beautiful season in their respective clubs. I have read content about fatigue for players who played lots of games at the club level, players get tired but does that justify every big name who has failed to deliver at the competition after their first match?
This is a huge topic I will elaborate in another article as time goes on.
The competition has given lots of talking points based on the results we got from some matches, and it is surprising to see countries stumble badly at the beginning of their Uefa Nations League Campaign. While some countries have failed to deliver, we have seen some do the unbelievable and this article will touch on everything you must have missed in the past few days.
The first big game according to the countries ranking on the Uefa Chart was between Spain and Portugal, the match didn't have lots of expectations from neutral sports lovers and it ended like every other match we have seen from both sides in the last decade.
It ended 1 -1 even though Spain dominated a lot, Portugal found their way back into the match very late and the two countries had no choice but to share the spoils of the match. That particular encounter was expected to give us an insight into either of the country's possibility of progressing into the next round of the competition but it turned out differently, a draw didn't put one ahead of the other and while they failed to do the needful, Czech Republic seized the opportunity against Switzerland to go up on the group table.
I doubt if that possesses a threat to the giant nations in the group and I still insist that the second leg between Spain and Portugal will still be the determinate of which nation will progress to the next round of the competition.
Group 1 in league A is one of the groups that caught my attention even before the competition kicked off, having Croatia and France in one group is huge.
I believe that despite France having the biggest chance of progressing from the group, Croatia can't be underrated but it turned out differently right from the beginning of the two contenders campaign. I know it wasn't just me who predicted both France and Croatia to win their first matches which would give them a strong stand for the ticket to the next round but they proved us wrong or should I say they disappointed their fans?
Croatia played host to Austria, the match result changed history it would interest you to know that the win for Austria was the first time the country would defeat Croatia. It wasn't just a usual defeat, they did it in style by scoring three and conceded nothing. The Croatians started strong but failed to do the needful, that night would be a one to remember for Austrians even if they don't make it out of the group.
It was the same thing for France versus Denmark, the visitor got a victory against the French team for the first time in two decades. That encounter had all eyes on it and France failed to meet the expectations of their fans despite having the likes of Benzema and Mbappe in the attack.
Benzema got a goal that was set up by Nkunku in the 51st of the match, the first 45 minutes playing alongside Mbappe was fruitless. The PSG forward was later replaced due to injury and his replacement gave them a chance for a goal.
We aren't expecting a lot from Denmark who turned out to be the team that got all the attention after 90 minutes and they can go on to prove to the world that they cant be underrated.
Belgium was another team that performed very much below expectations, the Netherlands wasn't a cheap side but Belgium did not get a single goal with Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne, and Eden Hazard in attack, it doesn't speak well judging by the class of players they are. The Belgians had to depend on Batshuayi who came in as a substitute to get a consolation goal from the encounter.
Most of their previous encounters ended with a draw and the two victories that were recorded in the past belong to Belgium meaning it is the first time the Netherlands would defeat Belgium.
Armenia happens to be another team that was incredible in their first match, I don't know how far they will travel in the competition but they did a great job defeating the Republic of Ireland. It would be the first time they got a victory against the Rep of Ireland and that should make the victory a special one for them.
Who would have thought that Southgate's awesome squad would have fallen against Hungary? Some of the results from the match day just made me understand that teams can't be underrated.
Having Jerad Bowen, Kane, and Mason Mount in attack made me believe that the Hungarians would be trashed, and the English team would win even from the first half but many of us keep making the mistake of playing matches in our heads rather than allowing the players do it with their legs.
By stats, England ought to win the match but they couldn't even get a single goal when they have the Roma goalscoring machine on the bench, they had game changers sitting on the bench and it is either he failed to use the team properly or they weren't just destined to win the match.
Starting the campaign on such a bad account might attract a big repercussion since they still have the likes of Germany and Italy in the same group, these are teams that can punish you for not taking your chances when you had it.
Germany and Italy played a 1 - 1 draw which seems to be a good thing for England at the moment because it could have meant a lot if either of the two sides had won the match. Hungary currently sits at the top and they will definitely be happy to record their first victory against the three lions.
Other things you should know.
The first match week produced 59 goals in total and it would interest you to know that at least one goal was scored in the 25 matches meaning none of the matches played in the first matchday ended without a goal.
Turkey, Georgia, and the Netherlands are the countries that scored the most goals (4 goals per match) on matchday 1, Belgium vs Netherlands match produced the most goals (Belgium 1 vs 4 Netherlands).
I also made the list of the players with the most goals in the competition after the matchday 1.
The 2022 UEFA Nations League goal scorer chart will be updated after matchday 2.
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