Portugal showed they did not need Cristiano Ronaldo, who walked out of the camp on Wednesday when coach Jorge Jesus relegated him to the bench.
Portugal forward Goncalo Ramos sealed the win in the 86th minute, following Joao Cancelo’s powerful strike that had cancelled out Kristoffer Ajer’s spectacular opener from outside the box for World Cup quarter-finalists Norway.
Speaking after the Portugal match, Jesus said he was willing to let the 41-year-old Ronaldo come back to the national team—though the choice would have to be the player’s own.
“If he wants to, he’ll come back to the national team… we can talk before the next squad announcement, but Cris is the one who will make the decision,” Jesus told reporters.
Jurgen Klopp’s Germany could not find a way past a stubborn Greek side, ending in a goalless draw in Thessaloniki.
Germany did put the ball in the net in the first half through Eintracht Frankfurt striker Jonathan Burkardt, but the goal was ruled out.
Klopp’s record as Germany’s new head coach now stands at one loss, one win, and one draw.
The Netherlands moved to the top of their Nations League group with a 2-1 victory over Serbia, sealed by Joshua Zirkzee’s winner.
The Manchester United forward came on in the second half in Eindhoven and got the decisive touch, tapping in from Tijjani Reijnders’ cross.
The game also marked Virgil van Dijk’s 100th cap for his country.
New Netherlands manager Xavi remains unbeaten after four matches, with two wins and two draws.
Israel’s players wore black armbands in their 1-1 draw with Ireland to honor the victims of Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack, after Irish players had done the same in the previous match in Hungary as a protest against the war in Gaza.
The plain black armbands worn by the Israelis bore the numbers “7.10,” marking the date of the attack.
Exactly as in last week’s first meeting, which Ireland won 3-0, the Irish players once more bowed their heads during the Israeli anthem, and the two teams declined to shake hands before the match in the small Serbian town of Backa Topola.
Citing security concerns and following calls for a boycott, the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) had refused to host Israel on Irish soil.
On Sunday, Troy Parrott put Ireland in front from the penalty spot in the 39th minute, after Dor Peretz fouled Jimmy Dunne.
But Peretz stabbed home an equalizer two minutes into the second half, converting from close range after a shot deflected off Ireland defender Liam Scales into his path.
The result makes Ireland’s qualification path harder, as they now sit third in Group 3 of League B, behind Austria and Kosovo. Israel is at the bottom with two points.
Wales suffered another defeat, as Rasmus Hojlund converted a 75th-minute penalty to give Denmark a 1-0 win in Cardiff.
Welsh goalkeeper Danny Ward had held the Danes off with a series of saves, but he gave away the penalty by fouling Denmark midfielder Gustav Isaksen.
