Club football is just days away following the October international break, in which several countries booked their place at Euro 2024 – here are some standout performers over the past week ahead of their return to the Premier League.
Darwin Nunez
The finishing struggles of Darwin Nunez at Liverpool have been well documented, but the striker was on the mark for Uruguay as they secured their first win over Brazil in 22 years.
The 24-year-old headed home the opening goal at the Estadio Centenario in the early hours of Wednesday morning, before setting up Nicolas de la Cruz to seal a famous 2-0 win over their South American rivals.
First victory against Brazil since 2001 and it was spearheaded by Darwin Núñez.
42’—goal
77’—assistIt meant so much to Uruguay 🇺🇾 pic.twitter.com/s4nprvB7Yy
— Anything Liverpool (@AnythingLFC_) October 18, 2023
Unfortunately for Nunez, he reportedly suffered with cramp towards the end of the game, meaning he is a doubt to start against Everton at the weekend.
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Bruno Fernandes
Bruno Fernandes rarely puts a foot wrong when he links up with his national team, and this past week was no exception.
The Manchester United playmaker provided a pair of assists, one for Goncalo Ramos and another for Cristiano Ronaldo, during Portugal’s 3-2 win over Slovakia.
The 29-year-old followed that up with a goal against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Monday, before laying on an assist for Barcelona loanee Joao Cancelo as his side ran out 5-0 winners.
🅰️ Gonçalo Inácio
⚽️ Bruno Fernandes#EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/duLH4aYaxQ— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) October 18, 2023
Portugal now head to Euro 2024 with a spotless record in qualification; they’ve won all eight games, scoring 32 goals and conceding just twice.
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Mykhailo Mudryk
Chelsea‘s decision to spend £88.5m on Mykhailo Mudryk in January has looked, to put it mildly, like a poor piece of business. But the winger is starting to show promise.
The 22-year-old scored his first goal for the Blues earlier this month against Fulham, and now he’s got his first international goal.
Mudryk sped down the left wing with the ball before cutting inside and striking from range to blast the side netting against Malta.
It’s a much needed boost for the player and helps the side on their way to potentially gaining automatic qualification for the Euros.
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Harry Wilson
Wales managed to secure a hugely important win over Croatia on Sunday to not only keep their hopes for automatic qualification alive, but put them in the driving seat for second place in Group D.
And a huge amount of the credit has to go to Harry Wilson, who scored both goals in the 2-1 victory at the Cardiff City Stadium.
The Fulham winger opened the scoring with a delightful lob over the goalkeeper following a ball over the top less than two minutes after the break. He followed it up on the hour mark by glancing home Daniel James’ cross.
Wilson inspires Wales ⚽️⚽️#EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/OV2lR7moyk
— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) October 18, 2023
WIn their final two group games in November and they will be on the plane to Germany next summer.
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