Gyokeres hat-trick and two penalty shootouts light up World Cup play-off semi-finals
Thursday night across Europe belonged to the teams that held their nerve. Eight World Cup play-off semi-finals played out simultaneously, and by the final whistle the four paths to the 2026 tournament in North America had their finalists.
Gyokeres destroys Ukraine in Valencia
The night's standout performance came from Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres, who ripped Ukraine apart with a hat-trick in Sweden's 3-1 win. Playing on neutral ground in Valencia, Gyokeres opened the scoring inside six minutes and doubled the lead in the 51st minute before wrapping things up from the penalty spot in the 72nd. Matvii Ponomarenko pulled one back for Ukraine in the 90th minute, but by then the contest was long over. Sweden will face Poland in Tuesday's Path B final.
Lewandowski leads Poland's comeback
Poland trailed after Arber Hoxha scored for Albania, but Robert Lewandowski and Piotr Zielinski turned the tie around in a 2-1 comeback win. The Barcelona forward, whose contract expires this summer, showed he still has plenty left and set up a mouthwatering final against Gyokeres and Sweden with a World Cup place at stake.
Tonali and Kean see Italy through
Italy did what they needed to without much fuss. Sandro Tonali opened the scoring and Moise Kean sealed a 2-0 win over Northern Ireland. The Azzurri will meet Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Path A final after the Bosnians scraped through on penalties against Wales.
Late drama in Cardiff and Prague
Wales looked set to progress after Daniel James put them ahead in the 51st minute, but Edin Dzeko, who turned 40 just nine days earlier, headed home an 86th-minute equaliser to force extra time. With the score locked at 1-1, Bosnia won the shootout 4-2 as Brennan Johnson blazed over and goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj denied Neco Williams.
In Prague, the Republic of Ireland led 2-0 through a Troy Parrott penalty and a Matej Kovar own goal, only for Czechia to claw their way back. Patrik Schick converted a penalty before half-time and captain Ladislav Krejci headed a late equaliser. In the shootout, Kovar redeemed himself by saving attempts from Finn Azaz and Alan Browne as Czechia won 4-3 on penalties. They face Denmark in the Path D final.
Kosovo stun Slovakia in seven-goal classic
The most entertaining match of the night came in Bratislava. Slovakia went ahead through Martin Valjent after six minutes, but Kosovo scored four times through Veldin Hodza, Fisnik Asllani, Florent Muslija and Kreshnik Hajrizi to lead 4-2. David Strelec's injury-time consolation made the final score 4-3, but Kosovo were already celebrating. They will play Turkey in the Path C final after Ferdi Kadioglu's 53rd-minute goal, assisted by Arda Guler, gave the Turks a 1-0 win over Romania.
Denmark cruise through
Denmark had the most comfortable evening of the lot. Mikkel Damsgaard opened the scoring in the 49th minute before Gustav Isaksen struck twice in the space of 60 seconds, in the 58th and 59th minutes. Christian Norgaard completed the rout in the 75th minute as North Macedonia were brushed aside 4-0. Czechia await in Tuesday's final.
Tuesday's play-off finals
The four finals on March 31 will decide the last European places at the World Cup: Italy face Bosnia, Sweden meet Poland, Turkey take on Kosovo, and Denmark play Czechia.
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