Argentina on the brink of missing World Cup
Lionel Messi and Argentina's hopes of reaching the 2018 World Cup were left hanging in the balance after another stalemate on a nail-biting day of South American qualifying action. Held to a 0-0 draw by Peru, the two-time world champions are outside the automatic qualification places and will have to win their match next Tuesday to play in Russia.
It was another desperately disappointing display by Argentina, who struggled to turn a wealth of possession into goals. Messi hit the post in the second half but could only watch in frustration after serving up a stream of chances for team-mates who failed to convert. The result left Argentina in sixth place in the standings. But even if Argentina beat Ecuador on Tuesday, they will still have to win a playoff against New Zealand in November.
Aussie anger
Australian players and media slammed the referee after Syria's controversial late penalty dented their hopes of reaching next year's World Cup following a 1-1 play-off draw in Malacca. The Socceroos remain in the box seat ahead of Tuesday's second leg in Sydney, where the eventual winner will go into a final play-off with the CONCACAF federation's fourth-placed team. But Omar al-Soma's 85th-minute equaliser raised harrowing memories of the 1997 play-offs, when Australia drew 1-1 with Iran in Tehran but were held 2-2 at home to go out on away goals. Forward Robbie Kruse, whose first half goal gave Aussies the lead, even claimed Iranian referee Alireza Faghani—who farcically gave him a yellow card when he went down with a serious injury in the 2015 Asian Cup final—was itching to give Syria a penalty.
Colombia bow out
Brazil, who have already qualified in first place, were held to a 0-0 draw by eliminating Bolivia in La Paz earlier Thursday. That left the focus on the teams jostling behind the five time champions for the three remaining automatic spots. Uruguay, who are second with 28 points from 17 games, missed the chance to book their place in Russia after being frustrated 0-0 away at Venezuela. Uruguay's Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani squandered a golden chance to win the game but shot wide in the 83rd minute. The Uruguayans are all but assured of qualification however, needing only a draw or a win against lowly Bolivia in Montevideo next week to book their place.
South American champions Chile, meanwhile, resurrected their qualification hopes with a thrilling 2-1 win over Ecuador in Santiago. Striker Eduardo Vargas drilled in a low shot on 22 minutes to put the 2015 & 2016 Copa America champions 1-0 up. But Alex Ibarra equalised in the 82nd minute for Ecuador to silence the home crowd. But with Chile's fans still struggling to digest Ibarra's strike, the hosts went back up the other end and Arsenal star rammed home a close-range finish after Arturo Vidal's shot was only partially saved. The win saw Chile climb from sixth to third in the standings. Chile will qualify automatically if they are able to beat Brazil in their final game next week.
In Barranquilla, Colombia threw away what looked to be a certain victory that would have put them within touching distance of qualification as they crashed to a 2-1 defeat to Paraguay. Radamel Falcao scored with a deft lob to put Colombia 1-0 ahead in the 79th minute. But the Colombians inexplicably continued to press forward and were twice caught on the break by Paraguay.
England, Germany qualify
Defending champions Germany clinched a place at next year's World Cup in Russia with a 3-1 win in Northern Ireland, while England beat Slovenia 1-0 to secure their berth. Sebastian Rudy and Sandro Wagner struck brilliant first- half goals in Belfast before Joshua Kimmich added a late third as Joachim Loew's team made it nine wins out of nine in European qualifying Group C yesterday. The four-time world champions also maintained their proud unbeaten away record in World Cup qualifiers—a run spanning an incredible 47 matches dating back to 1934.
Northern Ireland, who grabbed a consolation through Josh Magennis, remain on track to claim a spot in next month's play-offs as they attempt to reach the World Cup for the first time since 1986.
Harry Kane continued his stunning goalscoring form with a 94th-minute winner as an unimpressive England overcame Slovenia at Wembley. Gareth Southgate's side looked utterly bereft of ideas until skipper Kane converted Kyle Walker's inviting cross to score his 14th goal in nine games for club and country. It is the sixth time in succession England have qualified for the World Cup, but after making such heavy work of defeating Slovenia, they are unlikely to give the game's super-powers many sleepless nights.
Meanwhile, Scotland kept alive their hopes of reaching the finals for the first time since 1998 after a last-gasp 1-0 victory at home to Slovakia. While Robert Lewandowski scored a hat-trick to become his country's record goalscorer as Poland thrashed Armenia 6-1 in Yerevan. Poland, who finished third at the 1974 and 1982 World Cups, need a point from their final match at home to Group E rivals Montenegro to assure themselves of a place in the finals.
Christian Eriksen's 16th-minute goal steered Denmark to a 1-0 win in Montenegro to maintain their hopes of overhauling a three-point deficit to Poland when they host Romania in their final qualifier.
