Brentford will hope to have a number of key stars participate at next winter's World Cup, as Christian Norgaard and Mathias Jensen edged ever closer to sealing Denmark's place in Qatar next year, with a 0-5 win over Moldova thus maintaining their 100% record in Group F in the process.
Norgaard completed a full 90 minutes in their victory at the Zimbru Stadium, with fellow teammate Jensen coming on as a substitute as they comfortably emerged victorious with ease in Chișinău. A win over Austria on Tuesday night will officially seal their place in Qatar, with a draw being adequate providing Scotland fail to defeat the Faroe Islands on the same night. Barring any inconceivable twists, the Bees will certainly have two representatives on the biggest stage come December 2022.
With Kristoffer Ajer recovering from a hamstring injury, Norway still harbour ambitions of automatic qualification and lie two points off Holland, who are currently top. They drew 1-1 with Turkey this weekend with Halil Dervisoglu, currently on loan at Galatasaray from Brentford, an unused sub for the hosts. They host Montenegro tomorrow as they look to pile on the pressure on Le Oranje, who they face in their final qualifying game on November 16 in Rotterdam, with the winner potentially taking a place in Qatar next year.
In other international news, Yoane Wissa will hope to take to the field as DR Congo face Madagascar in their World Cup qualifier this evening. A win for the Leopards is hugely imperative as they aim to keep their hopes for qualifying for the third round alive, and they could go top of Group J providing they win and Benin fail to defeat Tanzania.
Frank Onyeka suffered a setback as Nigeria went down to a late 0-1 defeat to Central African Republic on Thursday afternoon. The Super Eagles will be intending to strike revenge when they meet each other again on Monday afternoon, with a win all but putting them in the driving seat for the third round - providing Cape Verde and Liberia manage to cancel each other out. Should that happen, Nigeria would be four points clear at the top with two games left, leaving their own destiny in their hands.
Saman Ghoddos could be set for an appearance in Qatar as Iran currently lie top of Group A with a 100% record. The midfielder was an unused sub in their last win over the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, but will hope to feature in their next clash against South Korea on Tuesday evening. A win for Iran would stretch their advantage at the top of their group to five points over Korea, with six games remaining.
If all goes to plan, the Bees could have up to six current first team representatives at next year's tournament. Whilst it might sound a cliché, it is testament to how far they have come in recent years.
