Lukébakio hits the bar, Denmark beat France
Four minutes of additional time were already up, as Leandro Trossard crossed from the left one final time and Dodi Lukébakio, finding himself in some space in the box, attempted an audacious overhead kick, crashing the ball into the crossbar. Moments after this big opportunity for Belgium to find a late equaliser, their game against the Netherland was over. It wasn’t to be for the Hertha player and his international colleagues, as the hosts held on for a narrow 1-0 win on the final matchday in Amsterdam in order to win the group and qualify for the latter stages of the tournament. Lukébakio’s ‘Red Devils’, meanwhile, ended this season of the Nations League with 10 points, coming in second place in Group 4 of Nations League A.
Christensen and Denmark win against the World Cup holders France
Denmark also finished in second place in their group. Despite a 2-0 win against France at home in Copenhagen, with Oliver Christensen watching proceedings from the bench and not featuring in the game, the team did not reach the latter stages. Both nations (Belgium and Denmark) remain in the A League and will attempt to reach the final stages in the next addition of the competition in 2024/25.
Pekarík's Slovakia secure third place
Peter Pekarík and Slovakia are now also confirmed to stay up and can plan for a future in Nations League C. After a 1-1 draw against Belarus, with Adam Zrelak equalising for the hosts in the 65th minute, Slovakia finished their Nations League campaign in third place in Group 3 of Nations League C with seven points, avoiding relegation in the process. “This was my 113th international game, and I enjoyed every single duel on the pitch. We definitely didn’t deserve just a point because we were the better team,” suggested Peka.
On Monday (26.09.22, 20:45 CEST), another Herthaner is in Nations League action in the shape of Stefan Jovetić. Montenegro are taking on Finland, and are looking to defend the second place in the table that they currently hold with seven points to Finland’s five.
An overview of Hertha players in international action
| Date | Kick-off | Player | Game (location) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu., 22.09.2022 | 20:45 CEST | Oliver Christensen | Croatia - Denmark (Zagreb) | 2-1 (0-0) |
| 20:45 CEST | Dodi Lukébakio | Belgium - Wales (Brussels) | 2-1 (2-0) | |
| 20:45 CEST | Peter Pekarík | Slovakia - Azerbaijan (Trnava) | 1-2 (0-1) | |
| Fri., 23.09.2022 | 18:00 CEST | Agustín Rogel | Iran - Uruguay (Vienna) | 1-0 (0-0) |
| 18:15 CEST | Márton Dárdai | Germany U21 - France U21 (Magdeburg) | 0-1 (0-0) | |
| 20:45 CEST | Stevan Jovetić | Bosnia and Herzegovina - Montenegro (Zenica) | 1-0 (1-0) | |
| Sat., 24.09.2022 | 18:00 CEST | Wilfried Kanga | Ivory Coast - Togo (Rouen) | 2-1 (0-0) |
| Sun., 25.09.2022 | 18:00 CEST | Peter Pekarík | Slovakia - Belarus (Backa Topola) | 1-1 (0-1) |
| 20:45 CEST | Dodi Lukébakio | Netherlands - Belgium (Amsterdam) | 1-0 (0-0) | |
| 20:45 CEST | Oliver Christensen | Denmark - France (Copenhagen) | 2-0 (2-0) | |
| Mon., 26.09.2022 | 20:45 CEST | Stevan Jovetić | Montenegro - Finland (Podgorica) | |
| Tue., 27.09.2022 | 18:00 CEST | Agustín Rogel | Uruguay - Canada (Vienna) | |
| 20:00 CEST | Wilfried Kanga | Guinea - Ivory Coast (Havre) | ||
| 20:45 CEST | Márton Dárdai | England U21 - Germany U21 (Sheffield) | ||
| 21:00 CEST | Chidera Ejuke | Algeria - Nigeria (Bir El Djir) |