UEFA Nations League round-up: Thursday's star outings assessed

 

The UEFA Nations League kicked off on Thursday as Kazakhstan faced Georgia. Here, we run through the top rated players from the nine midweek matches. 

 

Kazakhstan 0-2 Georgia: Guram Kashia - 8.24 rating 

 

Vladimir Weiss oversaw a 2-0 win to kick off Georgia’s UEFA Nations League campaign with centre-back Guram Kashia earning the man of the match award following a fine rearguard showing. The 31-year-old won six of eight aerial duels contested in the victory, no player won more, while two tackles, two interceptions and 12 clearances returned a WhoScored rating of 8.24. 

 

Armenia 2-1 Liechtenstein: Benjamin Buchel - 8.53 rating 

 

Liechtenstein may have fallen to a 2-1 defeat in Armenia, but the performance of Benjamin Buchel warrants praise. The away side’s goalkeeper made an impressive 11 saves, including one to deny Henrikh Mkhitaryan from the spot, to keep Liechtenstein in with a chance of securing a positive result. All in all, it was enough to earn a WhoScored rating of 8.53. 

 

Gibraltar 0-2 Macedonia: Ivan Trickovski - 7.93 rating 

 

Macedonia were rightly instilled as favourites to defeat Gibraltar and landed a comprehensive victory to end gameweek 1 atop group 4 in league D. Ivan Trickovski was the star man on the night has he scored one and assisted another to land a WhoScored rating of 7.93. Four aerial duels won and one successful dribble help pushed his score up in the victory. 

 

Latvia 0-0 Andorra: Aleksandrs Solovjovs - 7.64 rating 

 

Aleksandrs Solovjovs enjoyed a fine defensive display in Latvia’s 0-0 draw with Andorra on Thursday, with the left-back landing a WhoScored rating of 7.64. The defender made two tackles, two clearances and three interceptions as Andorria struggled to get the better of Solovjovs, while two aerial duels won capped off a fine showing from the 30-year-old. 

 

Norway 2-0 Cyprus: Stefan Johansen - 8.48 rating 

 

Norway landed a comfortable 2-0 win over Cyprus, with Stefan Johansen the star man in the victory. The 27-year-old has struggled for game time for Fulham this season, but that didn’t stop him from putting the Cyprus defence to the sword as he scored two goals from two shots. One dribble and one interception helped Johansen come away from the win with a WhoScored rating go 8.58. 

 

Slovenia 1-2 Bulgaria: Bozhidar Kraev - 8.12 rating 

 

Bozhidar Kraev was the man of the hour for Bulgaria in Slovenia as his brace secured a key three points on Thursday night. The 21-year-old landed a 8.12 rating, with Kraev scoring twice from four shots, while one tackle and one aerial duel won helped cap off a memorable display from the youngster. 

 

Czech Republic 1-2 Ukraine: Marlos - 8.12 rating 

 

Oleksandar Zinchenko’s late goal secured Ukraine all the spoils on Thursday night, but it was the experienced Marlos who landed the man of the match award with a WhoScored rating of 8.12. The 30-year-old provided the assist for Yevhen Konoplyanka’s goal on the stroke of half time, while four dribbles, three key passes and two tackles meant Marlos was deserving of the individual accolade. 

 

Wales 4-1 Republic of Ireland: Gareth Bale - 8.89 rating 

 

Gareth Bale netted a superb first half goal as he latched onto a Ben Davies long ball before smashing past Darren Randolph with his wicked left foot in what was a vintage Bale strike. He turned provider after the interval as he registered the assist for Connor Roberts’ second half strike as one key pass, one successful dribble and two tackles contributed to a WhoScored rating of 8.89, enough to land the man of the match award. 

 

Germany 0-0 France: Alphonse Areola - 8.47 rating 

 

 

Well that proved to be some debut for Alphonse Areola. The PSG won his first France cap in the absence of the injured Hugo Lloris and he didn’t disappoint as he secured the WhoScored man of the match award with an 8.47 rating. He made six saves in the 0-0 draw with Germany, including a stunning stop to deny a Matthias Ginter bullet header in the latter stages of the stalemate, while an additional cross claim meant Areola was well deserving of the man of the match accolade.

UEFA Nations League round-up: Thursday's star outings assessed