29/03/2026

theSun on Sunday MAR 29, 2026

SPORTS 13

Reijnders grabs winner as Oranje fight back

of 12 changes. There was a late chance for Norway as striker Jorgen Strand Larsen’s audacious back heel from a strong square pass almost deceived Verbruggen, who scrambled to keep it out. “Overall, we played a good match against a good opponent,” van Dijk said. “I thought we were better in the second half, partly because they were a bit more tired. Ultimately, we had enough chances to score more goals. Defensively, we were also solid. We won deservedly and now we move on,” added the captain. – Reuters

home from a corner for his 12th international goal. Donyell Malen was narrowly wide minutes after the break after a speedy combination with Cody Gakpo but it did not take long for the Dutch to go ahead. Gakpo stole possession in the midfield before Dumfries took over possession and fed Reijnders, who was right in front of goal and able to thrash the ball into the back of the net. A multitude of changes after the hour mark took the steam out of the clash. Norway brought on five substitutes in a single swoop and between the two sides they made a total

Mexico and the US in June, where the Netherlands are in Group F with Japan, Tunisia and either Poland or Sweden. Norway have been drawn in Group I with France, Senegal and either Bolivia or Iraq. Schjelderup’s goal was an outstanding individual effort as he cut in off the left flank, teasing Dutch fullback Denzel Dumfries before gliding inside past him and unleashing a shot that gave goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen no chance.

THE Netherlands fought back to edge Norway 2-1 in their World Cup warm-up clash yester day, with Tijjani Reijnders delivering the winner at the Amsterdam Arena. Norway held off early Dutch pressure to open the scoring in the 24th minute through Andreas Schjelderup but home captain Virgil van Dijk levelled 10 minutes before the break. Reijnders’s winner came in the 51st minute as the Dutch ramped up the pressure on a Norwegian team playing without Erling Haaland or Martin Odegaard. The high-intensity friendly served as preparation for the tournament in Canada,

Slick La Roja An equaliser always looked likely after that but Norway will be disappointed with Van Dijk easily climbing above their defence to head

Pochettino urges US to ‘play free’ US football coach Mauricio Pochettino yesterday urged his team to play with freedom and not to fear the pressures and expecta tions that come with co-hosting this year’s World Cup. Hopes are high for Team USA, which co-hosts alongside Mexico and Canada, and boasts a strong squad of players from top European leagues including AC Milan’s Christian Pulisic and Juventus star Weston McKennie. Pochettino encouraged his players to draw on the example of other American sports like the NFL and basketball, which he binged on when he was first appointed to the job in 2024. “The thing that I really enjoyed was that all the athletes that were involved in different sports, they play free – trying to perform and to entertain,” he said. “When you are free, you per form. When you feel happy, you perform. You don’t need to feel the pressure,” said Pochettino. Pochettino drew a stark contrast with his own experiences as a player in the 2002 World Cup. Argentina entered that tourna ment in Japan and South Korea among the favorites, but crashed out in the group stage. “Pressure is a thing that, if you don’t deal perfectly with this, can be heavy,” said Pochettino. “Argentine people felt the pres sure … It was really an energy that was so heavy, and we didn’t deal with that.” Pulisic, who has long been held up as a poster boy for US football, said he has deleted social media from his phone and tries to avoid the growing expectations. “I’m just kind of oblivious to it,” he said. “You guys want me to feel the pressure, that’s for sure!” he joked, when repeatedly questioned by journalists.

Oyarzabal double helps Spain to 3-0 friendly win over Serbia

STRIKER Mikel Oyarzabal got two superb first half goals and substitute Victor Munoz scored on his senior interna tional debut as Spain cruised to a 3-0 win over Serbia in a pre-World Cup friendly yes terday. With Serbia stepping into the breach after Spain’s origi nal plan to play Argentina in Qatar was derailed by the ongoing conflict in the Gulf, the Spaniards took the oppor tunity to hone their attacking play with some breathtaking ߑ movement and incisive pass ing that allowed them to cre ate plenty of chances. Spain took the lead in the 16th minute with a brilliantly constructed goal that saw Lamine Yamal feed mid fielder Fermin who worked the ball on quickly for Oyarzabal to blast into the net with a fierce left-foot shot. As Spain attacked relent lessly, Yamal received the ball on the edge of the box from Alex Baena ߑ three minutes later, but his low spinning drive struck the foot of the post and bounced away to safety. Veljko Birmancevic had Serbia’s first shot of the game in the 21st minute but it flew harmlessly into the hands of Unai Simon, and the visitors struggled to create decent goal-scoring chances. Fermin had the ball in the

net in the 36th minute but the goal was ruled out due to it bouncing off his arm in the build-up as ߑ he was tackled by Aleksandar Stankovic, and Spain were denied a penalty minutes later when the ball struck the arm of defender Nikola Milenkovic in similar circumstances. Oyarzabal netted his sec ond goal with a tremendous shot from the edge of the box in the 44th minute and though Spain continued to dominate, it took until the 72nd minute ߑ for them to find the net again, Munoz scoring after being teed up by a bril liant back-heel from Ferran Torres. “Due to circumstances (in the Gulf), we had to play this game but we were clear that the best way to face what is coming was to give every thing and try to take the posi tives,” Oyarzabal said. “I was happy to score, I wouldn’t have imagined being among ߑ the top scorers, happy for everyone who came and happy for Víctor Munoz. It doesn’t matter who plays, what matters is the col lective,” he added. Spain will compete in Group H of the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, kicking off against Cape Verde on June 15 before going on to meet Saudi Arabia and Uruguay. – Reuters

Spain’s Lamine Yamal (centre) and Serbia’s Aleksa Terzic (right) vie for the ball during the international friendly match at La Ceramica Stadium in Villarreal yesterday. – AFPPIC

Morocco draw under new coach, Algeria, Egypt post big wins MOROCCO grabbed a late equaliser to draw 1 1 with Ecuador yesterday in their first match under coach Mohamed Ouahbi as Africa’s World Cup-bound teams delivered mixed results in warm-up matches. injury ruled him out of the Cup of Nations in Morocco and he wasted no time reminding of his ability as they hammered Guatemala 7-0 in Genoa, Italy, scoring twice and winning a pen alty that Riyad Mahrez converted.

with 13 minutes left, only for Austria to score twice more. It does not get any easier for Ghana, who face Germany in Stuttgart on Tuesday. South Africa had to come from behind to draw 1-1 with Panama in Durban, but coach Hugo Broos proclaimed himself pleased with the way his team played. “The only thing was we couldn’t put the ball in the net,” he said. Cameroon and Nigeria are two notable absentees from the African line-up at the World Cup but still in demand as scrimmage partners for finals-bound teams. Australia beat Cameroon with a late sucker punch from Jordan Bos to win 1-0 in Sydney, but Nigeria were 2-1 winners over Iran in Antalya, Turkey, with Moses Simon and Akor Adams scoring for the Super Eagles. – Reuters

“There’s pressure – it’s a World Cup. It’s not because of my position in

Defender Achraf Abada’s goal before halftime was the best of the bunch as he fired a long-range thunderbolt into the net. Egypt handed Saudi Arabia a resounding 4 0 home defeat in Jeddah even without Mohamed Salah but their other Premier League-based striker Omar Marmoush was among the scorers. There are concerns, however, for Ghana, who were thrashed 5-1 by Austria in Vienna. The rout began in the 12th minute when Ghana gave away a penalty, and they were 3-0 down before captain Jordan Ayew pulled a goal back

Ouahbi took over from Walid Regragui this month and saw his side trail to John Yeboah’s 48th-minute goal in Madrid in their first game since the controversial Africa Cup of Nations final in January. Neil El Aynaoui headed home an 88th-min ute equaliser in a dour tussle in which Ouahbi did not tinker much with Regragui’s last line-up. Fellow North Africans Algeria and Egypt posted convincing wins while alarm bells are ringing in Ghana after they were crushed in Austria. Algeria had striker Amine Gouiri back after

the team or anything. I’m used to this.” – AFP

USA’s coach Pochettino. – REUTERSPIC