Euro qualifiers: England, Portugal register wins

England saw off Ukraine 2-0 to make it two wins from two, while Portugal thrashed Luxembourg 6-0 to take back-to-back wins in Euro 2024 qualifiers.
England hosted Ukraine at Wembley after having beaten reigning European champions Italy away three days previously. Harry Kane tapped in Bukayo Saka’s cross after 37 minutes and Saka curled in a close-range volley three minutes later, reports Xinhua.
The visitors failed to make any threat with only three attempts on goal, with England sealing a comfortable win to lead Group C with a perfect start.
Italy beat Malta 2-0 thanks to goals from Mateo Retegui and Matteo Pessina. The Azzurri are second in the group, but North Macedonia also claimed three points and have one game in hand over Italy.
In Group J, Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice to help Portugal sweep Luxembourg 6-0. The 38-year-old extended his record for international goals to 122 in his 198th appearance for his country.
Slovakia are two points behind Portugal as they defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 on Sunday. Iceland whitewashed Liechtenstein 7-0 to collect three points after two matches.
In Group H, Kazakhstan came from 2-0 down to beat Denmark 3-2, Slovenia beat San Marino 2-0, and Northern Ireland lost 1-0 to Finland.
Italy beat Malta 2-0
Italy bounced back from their defeat to England in Euro 2024 qualifying Group C with a 2-0 win over Malta, with Mateo Retegui scoring again.
The Azzurri’s campaign didn’t start on the right foot as they lost 2-1 to England in their opening match on Thursday, representing their first defeat in European qualifiers since 2006, reports Xinhua.
Head coach Roberto Mancini made radical changes in the starting line-up, opting for a new midfield partnership of Matteo Pessina, Sandro Tonali and Bryan Cristante, while Argentina-born forward Retegui led the line flanked by Matteo Politano and Wilfried Gnonto.
The reigning European champions got the job done in the first half, as Retegui broke the deadlock in the 15th minute when Tonali’s corner allowed him to score his second goal in as many games, before Pessina sealed the win in the 27th minute.
In Group C’s earlier fixture, England made it two wins from two as they beat Ukraine 2-0.