One Aston Villa international all but booked his place in the 2018 FIFA World Cup next summer, while five others kept their nations alive with crucial victories.
Friday was a good day for Aston Villa players on international break.
Iceland, and its population of just over 330,000 people, could become the smallest ever country to qualify for the finals of a FIFA World Cup. Three points over minnows Kosovo will put them through after thrashing Turkey away from home 3-0.
Villa midfielder Birkir Bjarnason scored for his nation – his ninth in 61 caps.
Birkir Bjarnason SCORED for Iceland. Three points against Kosovo will bring them to their first ever @FIFAWorldCup. #AVFC https://t.co/Cbc633UJma
— Claret Villans (@ClaretVillans) October 6, 2017
Elsewhere, Glenn Whelan, Conor Hourihane, and Scott Hogan were all unused subs in the Republic of Ireland’s 2-0 victory over Moldova. The Emerald Isle kept their World Cup dreams alive with three points off a Daryl Murphy brace.
What follows, is the final UEFA qualifying fixture – a penultimate trip to Cardiff. What’s on the line for Wales and Ireland? The winner goes through to second-round playoffs while the loser will get to enjoy next summer’s World Cup from their couch. Should they draw, there is a chance they both could be eliminated as the worst-placed second-place side. Wales own the tiebreaker on goal differential.
Wales kept their own hopes alive after seeing out a close 1-0 scoreline in Tbilisi. Tom Lawrence scored the winner as James Chester played the entire ninety minutes at center back. Neil Taylor was an unused substitute as Chris Coleman opted for a back four with Tottenham’s Ben Davies at left back.
Meanwhile, Josh Onomah scored this in England U-21 duty on Friday…
Great goal from josh onomah for eng u21 tonite pic.twitter.com/Ro3sXmwsw0
— roosterman 🟣🟡 (@roosterman8) October 6, 2017
Finally, Easah Suliman captained and scored in England U-20’s victory against Italy. A 5-1 scoreline in certainly encouraging for the central defender.
In its entirety, it was a tremendous day internationally for Aston Villa players. Ahmed Elmohamady and Egypt play Sunday against Congo.