Draws for Duda and Pekarik while Darida scores

Several Blue-Whites were on international duty on Sunday (13.10.19) and Monday (14.10.19).

Berlin – While the international break got off to a turbulent start for some Herthaner with a surprise 2-1 win for Vladimir Darida and the Czech Republic over England and Rune Jarstein and Norway’s 1-1 draw against Spain, Sunday (13.10.19) was a more relaxed affair for the Blue-Whites on international duty. Dedryck Boyata and Belgium have already qualified for next summer’s European Championship, but still had to face Kazakhstan in a qualifier in Nur-Sultan. The Red Devils did not show any signs of weakness as they celebrated their eighth win in eight matches. Boyata was an unused substitute during the 2-0 victory.

Duda features in friendly against Paraguay – Darida scores against Northern Ireland

Ondrej Duda was able to pick up some playing time with Slovakia as they drew 1-1 in a friendly against Paraguay in Bratislava. Duda featured in a goalless first half, while Pekarik was an unused substitute. “We brought along several players who haven’t seen that much playing time during the qualifying rounds to date. We wanted to win the match, but knew that we had a tough opponent ahead of us. Paraguay proved this through the manner in which they fought back to equalise against us,” Slovakia’s head coach Pavel Hapal said after the match. “Overall, I’m pleased with the result and am happy that we did not lose!”

Monday (14.10.19) saw two further Herthaner take to the pitch. Daishawn Redan and the Netherlands U19s faced Israel in a U21 EUROs qualifier in Jelgava. The Dutch were looking to build on a previous strong performance against Latvia, where Redan scored a brace and set up two goals in an 8-2 win. The Herthaner was ‘only’ subbed on in the 73rd minute this time around, as the Dutch secured a 2-0 victory. That evening saw midfielder Vladimir Darida and the Czech Republic play a friendly against Northern Ireland, a familiar face from Germany’s qualifying group. Hertha’s number 6 was brought on at halftime with his side down 2-0 and scored in the 67th minute to make it 3-1, putting the Czechs back in contention. However, the comeback was not meant to be, as the Czechs fell to a 3-2 defeat.