UEFA Nations League Matchday 6 Sunday round-up: France grab top spot, England earn promotion

An Adrien Rabiot double helped France claim a 3-1 win in Milan and finish top of their UEFA Nations League group above Italy, while England defeated the Republic of Ireland 5-0 to secure their return to League A.

UEFA.com rounds up the Sunday action as Matchday 6 got under way.

Italy 1-3 France

Two Adrien Rabiot headers helped France clinch the two-goal win they needed to pip Italy to first place in Group A2. The midfielder opened the scoring before Lucas Digne's spectacular free-kick went in via Azzurri goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Andrea Cambiaso's composed finish then restored the hosts to top spot before half-time, but Rabiot met a Digne cross with 25 minutes remaining to secure first place for Didier Deschamps' side, whose qualification for the quarter-finals – like Italy's – was assured before kick-off.

England 5-0 Republic of Ireland

England returned to League A with an emphatic victory in Lee Carsley's final game as interim manager. After a goalless first half, the hosts found the net through five different scorers in the second, with four players claiming their first international goal.

The visitors' stern defensive effort was undermined shortly into the second period as Liam Scales was shown a second yellow card after conceding a penalty, which Harry Kane converted. England quickly added two more goals via Anthony Gordon and Conor Gallagher, before Jarrod Bowen registered with his first touch and debutant Taylor Harwood-Bellis headed in a delightful Jude Bellingham cross.

Norway 5-0 Kazakhstan

An Erling Haaland hat-trick helped Norway seal promotion to League A as they outmatched Kazakhstan in Oslo. The 24-year-old, who now leads the Nations League top scorer race, showed his striker's instincts as he followed in Antonio Nusa's shot to open the scoring in the 23rd minute, before doubling his tally with a header.

Alexander Sørloth finished tidily for the hosts' third of the first half and Haaland completed his treble in the second, converting a right-footed strike from outside the box. A delightful curled shot from Nusa found the far corner five minutes later to cap the victory.

Best of the rest

• Debutant Yarden Shua's late clincher earned Israel a 1-0 win against Belgium, but it was not enough to prevent them from being relegated to League B.
• Despite taking their tally to 15 points in Group B2 after their 2-0 away win against Finland, Greece are play-off bound after finishing as runners-up to England.
• Austria will contest the League A/B play-offs after a 1-1 draw with Slovenia left them second in Group B3.

All Sunday's results

A2 Israel 1-0 Belgium, Italy 1-3 France
B2 England 5-0 Republic of Ireland, Finland 0-2 Greece 
B3 Austria 1-1 Slovenia, Norway 5-0 Kazakhstan 
C4 Latvia 1-2 Armenia, North Macedonia 1-0 Faroe Islands 

Monday's fixtures

A1 Croatia vs Portugal, Poland vs Scotland
A4 Serbia vs Denmark, Spain vs Switzerland
C2 Kosovo vs Lithuania, Romania vs Cyprus
C3 Bulgaria vs Belarus, Luxembourg vs Northern Ireland
D1 Liechtenstein vs San Marino

Tuedsay's fixtures

A3 Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Netherlands, Hungary vs Germany
B1 Albania vs Ukraine, Czechia vs Georgia
B4 Montenegro vs Türkiye, Wales vs Iceland
C1 Slovakia vs Estonia, Sweden vs Azerbaijan
D2 Malta vs Andorra

All kick-offs 20:45 CET.