Germany and Netherlands qualify as Europe’s big names deliver
Germany crush Slovakia to win the group
Germany booked their place at the World Cup in style with a dominant 6–0 home win over Slovakia. The match was over early thanks to four first-half goals as the hosts pressed nonstop and gave Slovakia no space to breathe.
Nick Woltemade scored again to continue his hot form, before Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sané (2) and later substitutes Ridle Baku and Assan Ouédraogo finished the job.
Ouédraogo, just 19, became the youngest scorer for Germany on his debut.
Germany top the group three points ahead of Slovakia, who now head into the March playoff. Slovakia had beaten Germany earlier in the campaign, but this time they were outplayed from the start.
Netherlands also book their World Cup ticket
The Netherlands joined Germany at the finals after a comfortable 4–0 win over Lithuania. Tijjani Reijnders opened the scoring before Cody Gakpo, Xavi Simons and Donyell Malen added three quick goals in the second half.
The Dutch dominated from the first minute and finished three points clear of Poland.
Poland stay alive with late drama
Poland kept their playoff hopes alive with a tight 3–2 win away in Malta.
Robert Lewandowski scored early, but Malta twice fought back. Piotr Zielinski finally settled the game late on, securing a vital win for the visitors.
Northern Ireland finish with a win
Jamie Donley scored his first international goal as Northern Ireland beat Luxembourg 1–0 in Belfast.
It was a quiet match, but the result closes their group with some confidence ahead of the playoffs they reached thanks to their Nations League success.
Czech Republic hit Gibraltar for six
Czech Republic, already assured of a playoff spot, powered past Gibraltar 6–0.
Five goals came in the first half, including strikes from David Doudera, Tomas Chory, Vladimir Coufal, Adam Karabec and captain Tomas Soucek.
Robin Hranac added one more right after the break.
The Czechs finish second behind Croatia, who pulled off a comeback 3–2 win over Montenegro.
