Greece holds Netherlands to 2-2 draw as Germany wins first match under Klopp
Greece maintained first place in Nations League Group A2 after drawing 2-2 with the Netherlands in Thessaloniki, while Germany recorded its first victory under manager Juergen Klopp by defeating Serbia 2-0.
Greece holds Netherlands in Thessaloniki
Greece maintained first place in UEFA Nations League Group A2 after securing a 2-2 draw against the Netherlands on Thursday, 1 October. The match, played in Thessaloniki with a 20:45 kickoff, pitted the group leaders against the second-placed Dutch squad. Greece established a two-goal lead during the first half, opening the scoring through Fotis Ioannidis in the 23rd minute before Giorgos Masouras scored a second goal during stoppage time in the 45+2 minute. The performance built on Greece's previous 1-0 victory over Germany on Sunday.
The Netherlands mounted a second-half comeback to secure a point in Thessaloniki. Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk scored in the 59th minute to halve the deficit, and midfielder Tijjani Reijnders scored the equalizer in the 69th minute. Before the fixture, the Netherlands held four points following a draw against Germany and a win over Serbia, while Greece entered the game with six points from two straight victories.
- Fotis Ioannidis opens the scoring for Greece
- Giorgos Masouras scores to double Greece's lead to 2-0
- Virgil van Dijk scores for the Netherlands to make it 2-1
- Tijjani Reijnders equalizes 2-2 for the Netherlands
Group A2 standings and Germany's victory under Klopp
The 2-2 draw kept Greece at the top of Group A2 with seven points from three fixtures. The Netherlands remained in second place with five points, missing the opportunity to overtake Greece in the standings. Germany claimed third place with four points after earning a 2-0 win over Serbia on Thursday. The match marked the first victory for Germany under the management of head coach Juergen Klopp. Serbia remained in fourth place at the bottom of the group with zero points following three consecutive losses.
Division A regulations state that the top two teams in each group will qualify for the two-legged quarter-finals taking place in March. The winners of those quarter-final ties will then progress to the Nations League Final Four tournament.
- Greece
- 7 points
- Netherlands
- 5 points
- Germany
- 4 points
- Serbia
- 0 points
Portugal leads Group A4 as Wales defeats Norway
In Group A4, defending champions Portugal earned their third consecutive victory by defeating Denmark 4-2 on Thursday. Portugal competed without Cristiano Ronaldo, who had departed the national squad camp prior to the game. Portugal sits at the top of the group table with a maximum of nine points after previously beating both Wales and Norway in earlier fixtures.
In the other Group A4 fixture on Thursday, Wales secured a 2-1 home victory against Norway. Striker Erling Haaland started for Norway, but the defeat left the Norwegian squad level on points with their group opponents. Behind table leaders Portugal, Wales, Norway, and Denmark each hold three points after three rounds of play.
Lower division draws and upcoming Friday schedule
Thursday's Nations League slate also produced draws across Divisions B and D. In Group B3, Ireland drew 2-2 with Austria, while Israel and Kosovo played to a 0-0 draw. Austria leads Group B3 with seven points, ahead of Kosovo and Ireland with four points each, while Israel holds one point. In Division D, Azerbaijan drew 0-0 with Liechtenstein, and Malta drew 1-1 with Gibraltar.
Competition continues on Friday, 2 October, with third-round matches that include Poland hosting Romania in Warsaw. Poland enters the match at PGE Narodowy in third place in Group B4 with one point, having drawn 0-0 with Bosnia and Herzegovina and lost 1-3 to Sweden. A defeat on Friday would push Poland to the bottom of their group standings.
