Robin Van Persie scores twice as Holland batter Romania. Eden Hazard is Belgium’s match-winner against Macedonia, Gareth Bale notches for Wales, while Wayne Rooney grabs England’s opener in the draw in Montenegro:
Holland 4 Romania 0
Robin Van Persie and Swansea’s Jonathan de Guzman started once again for the Group D leaders. Van Persie continued his return to scoring form by bagging a brace for Louis Van Gaal’s side – subbed off on 85 minutes, he has played all but five minutes of the two internationals and scored three times. De Guzman was withdrawn with 17 minutes remaining, while Michel Vorm and Ron Vlaar were unused subs for Van Gaal’s side, who are now seven points clear of second placed Hungary with four matches remaining. City stopper Costel Pantilimon and West Brom’s Gabriel Tamas played the full 90 for the visitors.
Wales 1 Croatia 2
Gareth Bale recovered from the illness/ankle knock combination which forced him off at half-time on Friday’s win over Scotland to take his place in the hosts’ starting XI. The Spurs winger opened the scoring from the spot and played the entire match without any problems, though his endeavours weren’t quite enough to prevent Chris Coleman’s side from losing. Swansea Ashley pair Ashley Williams and Ben Davies were joined by Reading pair Hal Robson-Kanu and Chris Gunter, with West Ham’s James Collins and West Brom stopper Boaz Myhill also starting for the hosts. Nikica Jelavic was once again an unused sub for the Croatians.
Belgium 1 Macedonia 0
Eden Hazard notched for the second successive game as Marc Wilmots’ side remained top of Group A on goal difference. The Chelsea man was one of six Premier League starters for the hosts – City skipper Vincent Kompany returned after two months out with a calf injury to take his place alongside Arsenal’s Thomas Vermaelen and Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen at the back, while the latter’s club team mate Mousa Dembele and Villa’s Christian Benteke also started. Dembele’s withdrawal on 55 minutes is said to be tactical, while Everton pair Kevin Mirallas and Marouane Fellaini climbed off the bench after the break, with the latter handed game time in the dying minutes.
France 0 Spain 1
The visitors returned to the top of Group I with a vital victory. Yohan Cabaye recovered from a groin injury to start for the hosts and was withdrawn on 70 minutes. Hugo Lloris, Patrice Evra and Laurent Koscielny played the entire match, while Olivier Giroud and Moussa Sissoko were sent on as late subs as the French chased a goal. For Spain, David Silva missed out through suspension, Juan Mata climbed off the bench in injury time, while Santi Cazorla was an unused sub, along with the likes of Cesar Azpilicueta, Javi Garcia, David De Gea and Pepe Reina. Arsenal left-back Nacho Monreal played the full 90 and teed up Pedro for the game’s only goal.
Montenegro 1 England 1
Wayne Rooney mirrored Van Persie’s form by also scoring in both internationals over the break. Roy Hodgson made plenty changes from the side the eased past San Marino – Gary Cahill missed out with injury again, while the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Leighton Baines and Frank Lampard all unused subs.
England XI: Hart; Johnson, Lescott, Smalling, Cole; Gerrard, Carrick; Milner, Cleverley (Young 76), Welbeck; Rooney
Serbia 2 Scotland 0
Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic and City’s Matija Nastasic both played from start to finish for the hosts, though Aleksandar Kolarov missed out through suspension. Scotland boss Gordon Strachan started with five Premier League players. With both Steven Fletcher and Russell Martin injured, Wigan trio Gary Caldwell, Shaun Maloney and James McArthur were joined by Martin’s Norwich team mate Steven Whittaker and Everton’s Steven Naismith. Charlie Adam replaced McArthur at the break, Maloney was subbed off on 80 minutes, while the likes of Graham Dorrans and Barry Bannan were unused subs as Scotland ended the night on two points after six games at the bottom of Group A.
Northern Ireland 0 Israel 2
The hosts returned to action after Friday’s game against Russia was cancelled due to severe weather conditions. United’s Jonny Evans was joined by West Brom’s Gareth McAuley and Fulham defender Aaron Hughes at the back, while Southampton’s Steven Davis and the Baggies’ Chris Brunt also played the full match. QPR’s Tal Ben Haim and Swansea forward Itay Shechter started for the visitors – the latter was replaced by Chelsea’s Yossi Benayoun with five minutes remaining.
Republic of Ireland 2 Austria 2
Jon Walters notched twice for Giovanni Trapattoni’s side but the Republic still conspired to throw away a two-goal advantage. The Stoke man was one of nine Premier League players named in the home side’s first XI; Seamus Coleman, John O’Shea, Glenn Whelan, James McCarthy, Shane Long, James McClean, Marc Wilson and Ciaran Clark were also included. Long and Clark were subbed off on 83 and 72 minutes respectively, while the rest lasted from start to finish. For the visitors, West Ham new boy Emanuel Pogatetz played the full 90 in defence and Villa’s Andreas Weimann was handed 21 minutes as a second-half sub.
Australia 2 Oman 2
A couple of Premier League keepers squared up in a match that took place early yesterday morning. Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer and Wigan’s Ali Al-Habsi both played the full 90 minutes – as did Villa midfielder Brett Holman, who saved the hosts’ blushes by bagging a late equaliser.
Jordan 2 Japan 1
United’s Shinji Kagawa and Southampton defender Mya Yoshida both played the full 90 for the visitors yesterday afternoon. A win would have ensured Japan’s qualification but, despite dominating, they blew the opportunity – Kagawa warmed up for United’s upcoming trip to Sunderland by notching the consolation with 20 minutes remaining.
Armenia 0 Czech Republic 3
Chelsea’s Petr Cech and Arsenal’s Tomas Rosicky both played the full 90 minutes in a comfortable win for the visitors.
Denmark 1 Bulgaria 1
Liverpool centre-half Daniel Agger played the full 90 for the hosts and notched the Danes’ equaliser from the spot.
Poland 5 San Marino 0
Southampton stopper Artur Boruc was once again preferred over Arsenal’s Wojciech Szczesny between the posts and registered a clean sheet in an easy win.
Germany 4 Kazakhstan 1
Per Mertesacker played the full 90 minutes for the hosts, while Arsenal team mate Lukas Podolski was an unused sub as the Germans moved five points clear of Sweden at the top of Group C, albeit having played a game more.
Bolivia 1 Argentina 1
City’s Pablo Zabaleta was an unused sub for the visitors, while Wigan forward Franco Di Santo climbed off the bench with four minutes left on the clock.
Ecuador 4 Paraguay 1
United winger Antonio Valencia was fielded from start to finish as the hosts moved to second in the South America group behind Argentina.
Slovakia 0 Sweden 0
Liverpool’s Martin Skrtel played 45 minutes for the hosts in a friendly run out, while West Brom centre-half Jonas Olsson was also subbed off at half-time as both sides made changes aplenty.
Chile 2 Uruguay 0
Three Premier League players started in a match that finished in the early hours of this morning. Wigan’s Jean Beausejour lasted 69 minutes for the hosts, while Luis Suarez and Southampton’s Gaston Ramirez turned out for the visitors. Ramirez was subbed off on 70 minutes without incident but the Liverpool forward courted controversy again by allegedly throwing a punch at Brighton’s on loan Gonzalo Jara as his country tasted defeat once again.
Panama 2 Honduras 0
Wigan pair Maynor Figueroa and Roger Espinoza both played the entire match for the visitors, while Stoke’s Wilson Palacios was also involved, climbing off the bench for the start of the second-half.
USA 0 Mexico 0
United’s Javier Hernandez played from start to finish for the hosts, while Villa’s Brad Guzan, Stoke’s Geoff Cameron and Tottenham’s Clint Dempsey all lasted the 90 minutes for the US. Cameron’s Potters team mate Brek Shea climbed off the bench with eight minutes remaining.
Costa Rica 2 Jamaica 0
As many as five Premier League players turned out in this one. Fulham’s Bryan Ruiz and Everton’s Bryan Oviedo played the full 90 minutes for the hosts, while Reading trio Jobi McAnuff, Adrian Mariappa and Garath McCleary started for Jamaica. Ahead of the Royals’ first match under new boss Nigel Adkins, the latter was the only one of the three not to finish the game after being subbed off with 10 minutes left on the clock.
In Other News
Michael Laudrup could be set to welcome back Chico to the Swansea defence in time for this weekend’s home clash with Tottenham. The Spaniard has missed the last four league matches with an ankle injury in a run that has seen the Welsh club lose three times and concede nine goals, with their opponents scoring at least twice in each of those defeats. Given that Laudrup’s side had conceded just four goals in Chico’s previous six appearances, it’s fair to say his absence has proven significant – with a double Gameweek 36 also on their agenda, faith in their backline could be set for an upturn once again.
Reports indicate that Sergio Aguero has declared himself fit in time for City’s home clash with Newcastle this Saturday. The Argentine has returned to full training after missing the last couple of league games with a knee injury – Roberto Mancini’s side have managed to score just once across that pair of fixtures and with a 15 point deficit behind United at the top of the table, it remains to be seen whether Mancini will involve Aguero this weekend. With their chances of retaining the title all but evaporated, it may well be that Mancini decides to ensure Aguero is ready for the FA Cup Semi Final clash against either United or Chelsea in a fortnight’s time as he looks to boost his chances of clinching some silverware instead.
Chelsea duo Oscar and David Luiz have been sharing their thoughts with the media ahead of a run of games which will see the Blues plays four times in nine days across three competitions. A league trip to Southampton on Saturday is followed by an FA Cup Sixth Round replay with United at Stamford Bridge two days later; Rafa Benitez’s side then host Ruben Kazan in the Europa League on Thursday before travelling to Sunderland in the league the following Sunday – a nightmare scenario for Fantasy managers. Rotation can be heavily expected under the Spaniard – a tactic Oscar agrees with as the London outfit looks to maintain their momentum on all three fronts, with Chelsea now just four points behind City in second:
“We have to play and rest as best we can. It is a week that could be really important for our season. We have games in all three remaining competitions, but we’re not thinking that one could be more important than the other. We want to win all of the games and we want to do as well as we can in all the competitions. We won’t sacrifice one for the others.”
Luiz, on the other hand, is keen to play as much as possible over the tricky period.
“I love to play games, I prefer to play games than training for sure. I want to play both games against Southampton and Manchester United and I want to win both matches. All the games are important to us – you know that at Chelsea. Southampton away is a difficult game, we need to win and after that we have a big derby in the FA Cup. Last year we won the competition, so it is also important.”
Having started the last four league games under Benitez since recovering from a calf complaint, the Brazilian has proved crucial at the back in a time where the Chelsea manager seems to have lost faith in the likes of Branislav Ivanovic. The Serbian has now failed to play in the last three and with Gary Cahill missing England duties through injury and John Terry’s knee problem still an issue, in addition to Ramires’ adductor injury in midfield, Luiz looks likely to be a key figure for Benitez.
