Martin Ødegaard, the captain of Arsenal, was hurt during Monday night Norway’s 2-1 victory over Austria and had to leave the field in tears. The 25-year-old needed assistance leaving the field after sustaining an ankle injury during the second half of the Nations League game. He was replaced in the 67th minute. Ødegaard is now doubtful for Sunday afternoon’s north London derby at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Arsenal will already be without Declan Rice, their banned midfielder.
The injury seems to be severe
“In the dressing room, Martin’s injury appeared severe,” Ståle Solbakken, the Norway coach, according to Norwegian TV2. “I noticed that he was seated with the physical therapists surrounding him, but we know that he sprained his ankle and that he was unable to continue. Yeah, it’s a sprain, and as those of us who have played football know, with luck it can turn out OK if the ligaments aren’t torn,” stated Ola Sand, the team doctor. We’ll see; perhaps an ultrasound will allow us to examine it. An MRI will be performed tomorrow if we are still unsure.” Stale mentioned.
After Ødegaard departed the field, Norway and Ralf Rangnick’s Austria were tied at 1-1 in their Group B3 match in Oslo. However, with ten minutes remaining, Erling Haaland of Manchester City scored the game’s winner for the home team. With the goal, he is only two goals shy of Jörgen Juve’s record of 33 goals for Norway. Benjamin Sesko of RB Leipzig scored a hat-trick to help Slovenia defeat Kazakhstan 3-0 at home, tying Norway on points at the top of their group.
France defeated Belgium with 2-0, Kevin De Bruyne furious
Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester City was furious in Lyon as France defeated Belgium 2-0 after a sluggish start. Goals from Randal Kolo Muani, who scored from close range, and Ousmane Dembélé, who scored with his left foot, gave the French their first points of the Nations League season. The team led by Didier Deschamps responded well, making eight starting changes, including Kylian Mbappé, following their 3-1 loss to Italy in their first Group A2 match last Friday in Paris.
Nevertheless, after the game, a very irritated De Bruyne took to Belgian VTM television to criticize his teammates, saying that too many things had gone wrong. “I am unable to explain what went wrong here. At halftime, I already did that to the squad,” he declared. “It needs to be better in every aspect, but I can’t say that again in the media. You have to give everything you have if the best is the standard we aim to meet but we can no longer achieve it. It’s over if you don’t even accomplish that. The back of us has too many people. Staying with six at the back will break the connection. That’s just the way things are. It is about people who fail to complete their tasks, not about transition.” De Bruyne remarked.
After Dembélé’s deflected shot found its way straight into the path of the Paris Saint-Germain striker, Belgium goalkeeper Koen Casteels made a one-handed stop to give France the lead through Kolo Muani in the 29th minute. Dembélé, who had always given the impression that he was dangerous, was rewarded in the 57th minute when he found space to shoot a fantastic shot past Casteels after skipping sideways along the edge of the Belgium box.
Bradley Barcola—whose transfer from Lyon to PSG last season is still remembered—and Mbappé were added in the 67th minute, to the amusement of the crowd. Mbappé appeared bright as he attempted to go on the scoreboard. Ten minutes from time, he missed barely from a tight angle, and in the 86th minute, Casteels stopped an effort from him. Italy jumped out to a three-point lead in the rankings after defeating Israel 2-1 in the other Group A2 match in Budapest.
Updates about other Nation League’s matches
The former Everton striker Moise Kean and Davide Frattesi gave Luciano Spalletti’s team a 2-1 victory. Just after the hour, Kean made it 2-0 on a rebound after Frattesi had given the Azzurri the lead with a chest-bumping goal just before halftime. In the ninetieth minute, Israel equalized through a goal from Mohammad Abu Fani, who scored from the edge of the box after the home team, who were holding the match in Budapest due to security concerns, had won a free kick.
Turkey defeated Iceland 3-1 at home, led by a hat-trick by Kerem Akturkoglu, a winger for Benfica, to draw even with Wales at the top of Group B4. With a 2-1 victory in Montenegro, Wales maintained their excellent start to life under new manager Craig Bellamy. Romania defeated Lithuania 3-1 at home to start Group C2 with their second win in as many games. Kosovo traveled to Cyprus and destroyed their hosts 4-0 in the same pool.
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