Brazil was the highest ranked team to fall on Wednesday, losing in Paris to a France side that continues to improve on last summer's World Cup disappointment. But while the Selecao were the biggest giants to fall, their fall was not the most surprising, with Slovakia losing to UEFA minnows Luxembourg.
International Match Day, FIFA Top 20 Round-Up
Here is the round-up of international match day results for FIFA’s top 20 ranked nations:
| Rank | Nation | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spain | 1-0 win over Colombia in Madrid Vicente del Bosque needed a very late goal from substitute David Silva to see his team to a 1-0 win over the visiting Colombians. The world champions started a full side yet were unable to break through until the 86th minute. | |
| 2 | Netherlands | 3-1 win over Austria in Eindhoven A wonderstrike in the 28th minute from Wesley Sneijder was followed by goals from Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Dirk Kuyt, the Reds' tally coming from the spot. A late Marko Marnautovic goal was only consolation. | |
| 3 | Germany | 1-1 draw with Italy in Dortmund The Germans ripped through the Italian defense for a 17th minute, Miroslav Klose goal, but off the bench and onto the scoresheet, Giuseppe Rossi's late goal salvaged a result for Cesare Prandelli. | |
| 4 | Brazil | 0-1 loss to France in Paris A de Jong-ian kick from Hernanes into the chest of Karim Benzema ruined this match in the 40th minute. Fourteen minutes later, Benzema scored, giving 19th ranked France the win. | |
| 5 | Argentina | 2-1 win over Portugal in Switzerland Lionel Messi assisted on Ángel Di María's 14th minute opener, and converting a spot kick in stoppage time, the World Player of the Year led the Albiceleste to a victory over the Selecçao. | |
| 6 | England | 2-1 win in Copenhagen over Denmark. A second half goal from Ashley Young, created with the held of Aston Villa teammates Stewart Downing and Darren Bent (who'd already scored) broke a 1-1 tie en route to a comeback victory for the Three Lions. | |
| 7 | Uruguay | Did not play. | |
| 8 | Portugal | 1-2 loss in Switzerland to Argentina It was a disappointing way to lose a match, but Portugal's ability to compete on a neutral ground with the Albiceleste is a decent testimony to their standing in the world. Cristiano Ronaldo was Paulo Bento's goalscorer. | |
| 9 | Croatia | 4-2 win over Czech Republic in Pula | |
| 10 | Greece | 1-0 win in Larissa over Canada. The visiting Canadians took the match to halftime scoreless. In the 66th minute, Olympiakos's 21-year-old midfielder Giannis Fetfatzidis capitalized on a failed clearance from Canada's defense, beating Milan Borjan for the match's only goal. | |
| 11 | Norway | 1-0 loss to Poland in Portugal A beautiful, early goal from Borussia Dortmund's Robert Lewandowski was the day's only scoring with the Euro 2012 co-hosts pulling the very, very mild upset. | |
| 12 | Russia | 0-1 loss in UAE to Iran. For many, this was the surprise of the day, with a stoppage time winner for Mohammad Khalatberi leading Iran to the upset. However, Iran won three of four at January's Asian Cup, eventually being eliminate in the quarterfinals by South Korea, 0-1 in extra time. In other words, they're not bad. | |
| 13 | Italy | 1-1 draw with Germany in Dortmund It was a good result for the Azzurri, particularly after giving up a relatively easy goal early. But in Gianluigi Buffon's return, one of the team's most promising prospects for the next cycle stepped-up, with Rossi finding the 81st minute equalizer. | |
| 14 | Chile | Did not play. | |
| 15 | Ghana | 4-1 win over Togo on Tuesday A strong win for the Black Stars, who were drawn at 1-1 after 48 minutes. Goals by Jonathan Mensah and Samuel Inkoom were augmented by a Togo own goal, giving Ghana its final margin. | |
| 16 | Slovenia | 2-1 win in Tirana over Albania You would think Slovenia, with their world ranking, could get better competition for the match day. Instead, they were away at Albania, a match were they needed the official's whistle to win. Zlatko Dedic's stoppage time conversion from the spot gave the Slovenes the win. | |
| 17 | Japan | Did not play. | |
| 18 | USA | Did not play. | |
| 19 | France | 1-0 win over Brazil in Paris Some of the names from last summer's World Cup team are starting to find their way into Laurent Blanc's side. Hugo Lloris, Eric Abidal, Bacary Sagna, Florent Malouda and Yoann Gourcuff all started today, with Les Bleus continuing their resurgence, defeating the world's fourth ranked nation. | |
| 20 | Slovakia | 2-1 loss Letzebuerg to Luxembourg This is the upset of the day. Luxembourg has only qualified for one major international tournament, the 1964 European Championships. None of their players play at a first division team outside Luxembourg, yet in the dense fog at Stade Josy Barthel, two second half goals from 22-year-old Daniel Da Mota saw them beat a team that made it out of their World Cup group. Awesome. |
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