Germany booked their place at next year’s World Cup in emphatic style, thrashing Slovakia 6-0 in their final qualifier. Four first-half goals—strikes from Nick Woltemade, Serge Gnabry, and a Leroy Sané brace—put the game out of reach long before the break. Slovakia, who had beaten Germany earlier in the campaign, struggled to cope with the hosts’ relentless tempo and must settle for a playoff spot. Ridle Baku and 19-year-old debutant Assan Ouédraogo added goals late on.
The Netherlands also qualified comfortably, beating Lithuania 4-0 to finish top of Group G. Tijjani Reijnders opened the scoring before Cody Gakpo, Xavi Simons and Donyell Malen added three quick second-half goals.
Poland kept their World Cup hopes alive by securing a playoff place with a tight 3-2 win over Malta, thanks to goals from Robert Lewandowski, Pawel Wszolek and a late winner from Piotr Zielinski.
Northern Ireland ended their Group A campaign with a narrow 1-0 win over Luxembourg, settled by Jamie Donley’s first international goal from the penalty spot, though their playoff hopes were already secured via the Nations League.
Czech Republic, already assured of a playoff berth, demolished Gibraltar 6-0 with five first-half goals, while Croatia mounted a dramatic comeback from 2-0 down to beat Montenegro 3-2 and finish top of their group.
