With their first victory in Portugal in 19 years, Germany’s World Cup opponents Spain still made it into the final tournament of the Nations League.
A late goal by Alvaro Morata (88th) saw Furia Roja beat veteran star Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. 1-0 (0-0) in Braga and pushed the Portuguese in Group A2 off the top of the table.
37-year-old Ronaldo, who narrowly missed twice (48’/72′), had the hosts’ best chances of taking the lead. The Spaniards, the German national team’s second opponent in the preliminary round in Qatar on November 27, surprisingly lost 2-1 to Switzerland on Saturday and lost their lead in the table.
In the second half, Luis Enrique’s team played with more determination and earned their first success in Portugal since 2003 in the final stages.
European champions Italy, the Netherlands and runner-up Croatia had already qualified for next year’s Final Four tournament.
Switzerland prevents relegation thanks to Bundesliga power
Switzerland made the league perfect with a 2: 1 (2: 1) against the Czech Republic. Remo Freuler (29th) and former Bundesliga striker Breel Embolo (30th) scored for the Swiss.
Leverkusen’s Patrik Schick (45th) shortened for the Czechs, who were relegated to the B class as the bottom of the table.
They accompany Austria, England and Wales. Goalkeeper Yann Sommer from Borussia Mönchengladbach fended off a penalty kick from Tomas Soucek (61′).
No goals for Erling Haaland in Norway bankruptcy
The promotion to the A-League was completed on the last day by Serbia and Scotland.
World Cup participant Serbia prevailed 2-0 (1-0) in Norway and thus secured first place in Group B4, former Dortmund player Erling Haaland went away empty-handed. A 0-0 draw against Ukraine in Kraków was enough for the Scots to maintain their lead in Group B1.
Dusan Vlahovic (42nd) and Aleksandar Mitrovic (54th) scored the goals for the Serbs. Bosnia-Herzegovina and Israel had previously made it into the highest class.
Armenia and Sweden were relegated to the C-League, following Romania. Former European champions Greece, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Georgia replace the three relegated teams and the Russian national team, which was suspended because of the war of aggression against Ukraine.