It was a thoroughly successful night of World Cup qualifying action for FC Bayern players! A French team featuring Dayot Upamecano, Benjamin Pavard and Kingsley Coman beat Finland in their concluding match in Group D, Alphonso Davies and Canada enjoyed a 2-1 success over Mexico, and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting’s Cameroon progressed to the third round of qualification thanks to a 1-0 win against Ivory Coast. Read all about it in our international round-up.
France end campaign with win
Having already confirmed their place at the 2022 World Cup on Saturday, France recorded another win in their final match. Les Bleus beat Finland 2-0 in Helsinki courtesy of second-half goals from Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappé. Centre-back Upamecano played the full 90 minutes, while Pavard (46th minute) and Coman (57th minute) both came off the bench. Lucas Hernández did not feature. With 18 points from eight games, the reigning world champions comfortably finished top of Group D.
Davies and Canada top after win
What a night for Davies! In his childhood city of Edmonton, the Bayern star celebrated a 2-1 win against Mexico with the Canadian national team overnight. Cyle Larin netted both goals for Canada either side of half-time, with Héctor Herrera reducing the deficit for Mexico in the 90th minute. Davies was named in the starting line-up and played until the 88th minute. The victory has lifted Canada to the top of the table in CONCACAF World Cup qualification with 16 points, one ahead of USA and two ahead of Mexico and Panama, with six matchdays left. The top three qualify directly for the finals in Qatar, with the fourth-placed team going into the play-offs.
Choupo-Moting and Cameroon through to third round
Choupo-Moting and Cameroon also had cause for celebration on Tuesday night. In their deciding group match in the second stage of World Cup qualification, the Indomitable Lions defeated Ivory Coast 1-0, Karl Toko Ekambi scoring the all-important goal after 21 minutes. Choupo-Moting was a 72nd-minute substitute. The win saw Cameroon overtake Ivory Coast in the table and go through to the final round of qualification, which will be contested in March 2022.
Marcel Sabitzer and Austria claimed a convincing win to round off their World Cup qualification campaign:
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