Sweden thrashes Azerbaijan in the last game before the quarter-finals
Four goals from Sporting forward in Sweden’s 6-0 win over Azerbaijan. Swedes move up to League B, Azerbaijan end up in League D
Words are running out to describe the season that Viktor Gyokeres is having in the 2024/25 season. The Sporting forward is not just showing his worth for the club: in the last game of the Nations League group stage , he scored four of the six goals in the Swedish team’s rout of Azerbaijan , coached by Fernando Santos, and secured direct promotion to League B of the competition.
26, 37, 58 and 70. These were the minutes in which the Azeri players felt what, before the start of this match, other defences had already experienced on 28 occasions. When the Swedish striker scored the first goal, the result was no longer the same, with Kulusevski opening the scoring in the 10th minute, with the ball falling to the Tottenham playmaker after a play by Gyokeres . In a game that was always uneven, due to the quality displayed by both sides, the top scorer in the Portuguese league scored the second, with a shot still under pressure, and the third with a precise cross-shot.
The score was 3-0 at half-time, even after Alexander Isak scored, a goal that was disallowed for offside. While one of Sweden ‘s forwards was inspired, the same could not be said of the other. The Newcastle player , who had barely made an appearance in the match, not only saw his goal disallowed, but also missed a penalty right at the start of the second half. Even so, these chances did not affect the outcome in any way.
Kulusevski scored twice after another move by Gyokeres and, immediately after the kick-off, the Sporting forward put pressure on the defence and… scored. Hat-trick complete and, to complete the score, the goalscorer appeared at the far post to tap in a cross from Salétros.
Viktor Gyokeres has now scored 32 goals in all competitions, in 24 games. He is the top scorer of the season, in the Portuguese league, the Nations League and the Champions League . He was the protagonist in a rout that sealed promotion and confirmed Azerbaijan’s relegation to League D of the national team competition. An easy but necessary victory: a goal from Strelec in the 72nd minute earned Slovakia a victory against Estonia.
