James Maddison was delighted to earn his "second debut" with England after facing difficulties during the World Cup in Qatar.

The Leicester City midfielder's second cap for the Three Lions came three and a half years after his international debut, with opportunities not forthcoming in that spell as he faced immense competition for a berth in the side.

Maddison shone in his display against Ukraine at Wembley, creating five chances – the most of any player in their first game for England since Theo Walcott created six against Andorra in September 2008.

With his England debut feeling like "a lifetime ago", Maddison enjoyed his second coming into the national side.

"It felt great. I said in there it almost felt like a second debut. Like it doesn't really work. But it's been that long," he told reporters.

"It feels a lifetime ago, since that Montenegro again. So almost felt like a secondary it felt really good out there.

"It's so refreshing to be out there with the lads and, in a strong team and a big game. So, I really enjoyed it."

Maddison's hopes of featuring for England at the World Cup in Qatar suffered a serious blow after picking up an injury ahead of the tournament, leaving him battling for fitness in his bid to play.

No minutes in the tournament came for the Leicester City man, who detailed the struggles he endured during England's campaign.

"I felt there were a lot of lows, and there's a lot of sad, sad faces when I was in my room by myself," he explained.

"Just thinking 'why now this little injury why? Why in the West Ham game did I get that just before the World Cup', after I've worked so hard to get to the position where it felt everyone was clamouring for me to be in the squad.

"And I've worked so hard and my performances were really good. And so there were tough times in the room in Qatar, FaceTiming home, just sad, but it was almost like a battle with myself to say, 'don't take this for granted'.

"I might not be able to shake this injury off, but it will leave me in good stead if I show Gareth, and show the people who are questioning my personality off the fields that or whatever that is, that's all rubbish and that I can be a good person.

"We have such a good group and I get on so well with the lads and the staff, and it's what you see from the outside is exactly how it is.

"The togetherness and the fun nature of the energy around the camp. So, I hoped stuff like that would leave me in good stead."

Bukayo Saka "brings happiness to everyone else" in the England camp, according to Ben Chilwell, who joined Oleksandr Zinchenko in lauding Sunday's Euro 2024 qualifying match-winner.

Saka has enjoyed an outstanding season for Arsenal, playing alongside Zinchenko, with 12 goals and 10 assists in the Premier League as the Gunners bid for a first title in 19 years.

Only Erling Haaland (33) and Harry Kane (23) can top the winger's 22 goal involvements in the competition.

And Saka has continued that form on the international stage with England, most recently in a 2-0 win over Zinchenko's Ukraine at Wembley.

The 21-year-old produced a sublime cross for Kane's opener, then quickly went one better with a sensational long-range strike. He has 10 goal involvements in his past 16 games for England.

Like Chilwell and Zinchenko, Saka was previously used as a left-back when he broke through at Arsenal, prompting some bemusement from his England team-mate.

"I can't believe he played at left back when he can do that," Chilwell said. "He's such a great talent.

"I think everyone can see what he gives on the pitch, but he's one of the best people I've met in football as well.

"We see him on a daily basis around the camp, and he just brings happiness to everyone else. He's always smiling. He's a good guy to be around.

"And then he comes out on the pitch and delivers like that for us – an assist and a goal and ultimately wins the game. So, I'm delighted for him."

Zinchenko, used in a midfield role at international level while poor Vitalii Mykolenko suffered up against Saka, added: "He's an amazing player. We knew that.

"He's on fire at the moment, and I wish him that to the end of the season.

"I said already that there are no friends on the pitch; unfortunately, he beat me today, but I will take revenge."

Manchester City have moved to try to extend Ilkay Gundogan's stay at the Etihad Stadium in recent months.

The 32-year-old signed a four-year deal with City in 2019, meaning he is out of contract at the end of this season.

However, Gundogan has been in and out of the City starting line-up in recent months and has been weighing up his future.

TOP STORY - GUNDOGAN SET ON BARCELONA SWITCH

Ilkay Gundogan's heart is set on leaving Manchester City for Barcelona in the off-season, claims SPORT.

Barcelona head coach Xavi is eager to land the German midfielder, who scored a double on the final day of last season to clinch City the Premier League title, for his versatility.

The report claims Gundogan feels it is time to move on from Manchester, having joined the club in 2016 with the Blaugrana offering him a two-year deal.

ROUND UP

– Calciomercato claims Inter are plotting a surprise move for Paris Saint-Germain's Lionel Messi during the next transfer window, although they will face opposition from Barcelona.

– Manchester United have an interest in Portugal international striker Goncalo Ramos, per Record. Ramos has a €120million (£105.6m) release clause in his Benfica contract.

– Football Insider reports Chelsea are willing to pay £100m for Napoli forward Victor Osimhen, who is drawing interest from several top clubs.

– Barcelona have urged Dani Olmo not to sign a contract extension with RB Leipzig as the Blaugrana seek to sign him on a free transfer when his deal expires in 2024, according to Mundo Deportivo.

– Arsenal's off-season transfer priority will be Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Moises Caicedo, per Football Transfer. The Gunners tried to sign the Ecuadorian in January.

– Atalanta have placed a €40m (£35m) price tag on forward Rasmus Hojland amid interest from Juventus and Arsenal, reports Fichajes.

Bruno Fernandes does not believe Portugal needed the "breath of fresh air" that Cristiano Ronaldo was looking forward to under Roberto Martinez.

Martinez has taken charge of Portugal for the first time in this international break, having succeeded Fernando Santos following the World Cup.

The former Belgium coach has overseen 4-0 and 6-0 defeats of Liechtenstein and Luxembourg respectively to begin Euro 2024 qualifying.

Captain Ronaldo scored twice in each match, having earlier spoken of "fresh air now, different ideas and mentality" with Martinez at the helm.

Despite the positive start, that is not an assessment team-mate Fernandes agrees with.

"No, it's just a new coach with new ideas," the Manchester United midfielder told RTP3 after Sunday's win against Luxembourg.

"There is no breath of fresh air at all. It's just a transition period.

"The atmosphere in the national team has always been good. There's never been anything that wasn't fresh of the air, so I think it's just new dynamics, new coach, and you have to assimilate his ideas."

Fernandes was handed his Portugal debut by Santos, who had guided the Selecao to their first major honour at Euro 2016.

Portugal failed to build on that strong start to the coach's tenure, however, exiting the 2018 World Cup and Euro 2020 at the last-16 stage.

Santos then departed after a shock quarter-final exit at the hands of Morocco at Qatar 2022, with Ronaldo dropped for the knockout rounds.

Roberto Martinez hailed the experience of Cristiano Ronaldo as the 38-year-old scored twice in Portugal's 6-0 thrashing of Luxembourg.

Ronaldo followed up his brace against Liechtenstein on Thursday with another on Sunday at the Stade de Luxembourg as Portugal made it two wins from two to start their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign.

Joao Felix, Bernardo Silva, Otavio and Rafael Leao added the other goals, and Martinez was quick to praise Ronaldo for his contributions in the Spaniard's first games as head coach.

"Cristiano has incredible international experience, probably unique as he is the only player [in the world] with 198 caps," he said at a post-match press conference. "His experience is very important in the dressing room."

Former Belgium boss Martinez also claimed he was happier with another clean sheet than with his team's attacking display, and reserved praise for 19-year-old centre-back Antonio Silva, who replaced Goncalo Inacio from the Liechtenstein win.

"I value the zero goals against more than the six goals, the penalty and the great attacking game we played here in Luxembourg," he said. "This game was not easy. What was important in both games was work and consistency.

"It wasn't just changing some of the options. There are many options, it was more a change due to the physical demands. It was important to see Goncalo Inacio play well in the first game [v Liechtenstein], but for a young man, three days after a game, it was also important for him to rest.

"It was important to see Antonio Silva entering a very important position, getting on the ball and going up against Luxembourg's attack.

"It was good to see Antonio Silva together with the experience of Ruben Dias and Danilo Pereira. And Rui Patricio was also very good, so the team was very strong defensively in this game."

Portugal top Group J ahead of Slovakia by two points, with the next round of fixtures coming in June when the Selecao host Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has called on everyone associated with the club to pull together for the remainder of the season after parting ways with head coach Antonio Conte.

Spurs released a statement on Sunday confirming the exit of Conte, whose future had been the subject of intense speculation since hitting out at his players the previous weekend.

Conte called his players "selfish" after squandering a two-goal lead in a 3-3 draw with bottom side Southampton, while questioning the club's lack of success during Levy's time as chairman.

Tottenham exited the FA Cup and Champions League this month, stretching their wait for a trophy into a 16th year, with a top-four finish in the Premier League now their only target.

Conte's assistant Cristian Stellini will oversee Spurs' remaining 10 league games, starting with a trip to Everton on April 3, and Levy is hoping for a strong finish to the campaign.

"We have 10 Premier League games remaining and we have a fight on our hands for a Champions League place," he said in a short statement published on Spurs' official website. 

"We all need to pull together. Everyone has to step up to ensure the highest possible finish for our club and amazing, loyal supporters."

Spurs still have top-four rivals Manchester United, Newcastle United and Liverpool to face in their remaining fixtures.

Fourth-place Tottenham are two points better off than Newcastle and seven in front of Liverpool, but both sides have two games in hand. 

Antonio Conte has left Tottenham by mutual consent, a week on from criticising the club and players in a remarkable outburst, with assistant Cristian Stellini to take charge until the end of the season.

Conte hit out after Spurs blew a two-goal lead in a 3-3 draw away to rock-bottom Southampton last Saturday, calling his players "selfish" and questioning Tottenham's lack of success during Daniel Levy's time as chairman,

He was reportedly asked by Levy and club chiefs to clarify those comments, apparently insisting his "20 years and they never won something" comment was aimed at the players, rather than his bosses.

But seemingly Conte's position had become untenable, with Spurs confirming the Italian's departure on Sunday, eight days on from his public tirade.

"We can announce that head coach Antonio Conte has left the club by mutual agreement," a Spurs statement read. 

"We achieved Champions League qualification in Antonio’s first season at the club. We thank Antonio for his contribution and wish him well for the future.

"Cristian Stellini will take the team as acting head coach for the remainder of the season, along with Ryan Mason as assistant head coach."

Conte already looked likely to leave Spurs in June when his contract was set to expire.

Media reports earlier this month suggested neither Conte nor Spurs wanted to extend the arrangement.

Fans had long been frustrated by the brand of football introduced by the former Chelsea boss, and recent results only made the atmosphere more toxic.

While Conte was absent after having gallbladder surgery, Spurs were knocked out of the FA Cup by Championship side Sheffield United on March 1, and a week later they were eliminated from the Champions League after a limp 0-0 draw at home to Milan, who had beaten them 1-0 in San Siro.

Although Spurs defeated Nottingham Forest 3-1 on March 11 to earn some momentary respite, their late collapse at St Mary's – followed by Conte's extraordinary rant – proved the final straw.

Conte departs with Spurs still firmly immersed in the race for Champions League qualification, sitting fourth in the Premier League.

However, Liverpool and Newcastle United – seven and two points behind respectively – have two games in hand.

Former Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino is among those linked with succeeding Conte, while Luis Enrique, Marco Silva and Julian Nagelsmann – officially sacked by Bayern Munich on Saturday – are also said to be contenders.

Mateo Retegui's instant impact for Italy has left Roberto Mancini considering exploring further options for the Azzurri through the dual-citizenship ruling.

Argentina-born Retegui scored on his international debut for Italy in Thursday's 2-1 defeat to England and found the net again in the 2-0 victory over Malta three days later in Euro 2024 qualifying.

The striker's selection has sparked debate closer to home with Azzurri striker Mario Balotelli previously suggesting Mancini has enough attacking options to call upon from Italy.

But head coach Mancini has been encouraged by Retegui's early development and refused to rule out making similar moves in future.

He said at his post-match press conference: "Retegui is a goalscorer, it's no small thing. It's what we saw when we followed him. He still needs time, but he scores goals and it's an important quality.

"He has the qualities of a centre-forward, but now we have to wait, we have to give him time. He's like a student in a new school: he has to learn everything. But he has unlocked the game, that's no small thing.

"Retegui in Serie A would be a good thing, I think this would give him more strength, he would be able to learn the language and consequently communicate better with his team-mates."

Pressed on whether he would select more non-Italian natives, Mancini added: "Yes, it's a possibility. We have a small percentage of players in Serie A. In Switzerland, 15 out of 20 are natives.

"Belgium is the same. France, Germany, England are among the natives. Up until a certain number of years ago, we had strong players and we didn't need to.

"The others have done things to us, often they've taken away players we've raised and we'll do the same."

Victory over Malta leaves Italy three points behind embryonic Group C leaders England, with the Azzurri not again in action until June's Nations League semi-final against Spain.

"We just have to work and do the right things," Mancini added to Sky Sport Italia. "We always say the same things, we are becoming talkative.

"Work is a big word because there isn't time, we only have time to make them recover and to prepare a little something, there isn't time."

Tottenham officially parted company with head coach Antonio Conte on Sunday after 16 months in charge.

Conte guided Spurs to a top-four finish in the Premier League upon taking over last season, but a 2022-23 campaign that promised plenty has proved incredibly underwhelming.

Spurs may again occupy fourth place, though some patchy form – particularly on their travels – has allowed Newcastle United to move to within two points with two games in hand.

After exiting the FA Cup and Champions League in quick succession, Conte's position was called into question amid suggestions he was seeking a way out of the club.

And after letting a two-goal lead slip in a 3-3 draw with bottom side Southampton in what turned out to be his final game in charge, the Italian criticised his players for being "selfish" and "not playing with a heart".

But does the blame for Spurs' latest trophy-less season really lie with Conte? After all, he is the seventh permanent boss to fail to win a trophy since their 2008 EFL Cup triumph.

Here, two Stats Perform writers argue the case for and against Conte's exit.

THE CASE AGAINST (ED HARDY)

The more things change, the more they stay the same

The boss is often shown the door because it is easier to remove one person than a full squad of players. But how many more world-class coaches do these Tottenham players have to go through before it is realised that the fault lies with them?

Over the years, much of this squad has been responsible for the downfall of Mauricio Pochettino and Jose Mourinho. Although the two managers were not completely void of any blame, it was not their fault that these players suffered a cup exit to League Two Colchester United, let a three-goal lead slip in the final 10 minutes against arch rivals West Ham, or went crashing out of the Europa League with a shock 3-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb.

Each time the boss played his strongest players, but embarrassment still occurred. Those embarrassments have continued into this season. How was Conte to blame for Tottenham's FA Cup defeat to Sheffield United when he was not even there? He was still in Italy recovering from surgery. Spurs did not even play a much-changed side that day either, as most first-choice players started, and yet they still lost.

From kick-off, the Bramall Lane crowd were right on the Spurs players and they did not like it. After the draw at Southampton, one of the many things Conte said was that his players do not want to play under pressure. He was right. There is a lot of quality at the club, but that is overshadowed by too many players who are not good enough. Japhet Tanganga, Davinson Sanchez, Clement Lenglet, Ryan Sessegnon and Lucas Moura, just to name a few, are not up to the standard and yet apparently that was Conte's fault?

Patience was what was required for Conte to turn the situation around – it took Mikel Arteta three years to do so at Arsenal, for example – and get a squad capable of challenging.

However, that has not happened in this case and once again a world-class coach – who won a league title with Inter in Serie A the season before joining Spurs – has been dragged down by his players.

Too much deadweight

It is important to first debunk a myth that Conte was not backed by the board, because he was. From Dejan Kulusevski to Richarlison to Pedro Porro, and many more in between, the club bought quality players in every transfer window Conte was at the club. But the problems lie way beyond that.  The mentality of a football club is set from the top, and it seems under chairman Daniel Levy that Tottenham lack the nous needed to win big trophies.

Simply achieving European football has always been considered a success in his eyes, and that mentality has seeped through the club. One EFL Cup in 22 years of Levy says it all. 

There is also the problem of outgoings. Too many average players have stayed at Spurs for far too long. For example, Sanchez and Lucas have both been there for over five years, Tanganga has been a first-team regular for four seasons, while Eric Dier and Ben Davies are approaching a decade at the club.

Why has Levy allowed these players to stick around under big contracts? That is not to even mention all the other deadwood – Harry Winks, Giovani Lo Celso, etc – still technically on Tottenham's books, but on loan at clubs across Europe.

Although Conte was not completely innocent in all of this, these are some of the players he had to contend with and it was never going to be the type of fix that happened overnight.

THE CASE FOR (DANIEL LEWIS)

Negative tactics and questionable selection calls

As someone who can boast five league titles across spells with Juventus, Inter and Chelsea in Italy and England, Conte is rightly lauded as an elite coach. With elite coaches often comes excess baggage, and in this instance Conte's latest rant – having already backtracked after a similar tirade earlier in the month – was always going to be the final straw. 

The Italian was eager to point the blame at his players, yet Tottenham managed just five shots on target across 180 minutes of their Champions League last-16 defeat to Milan, despite needing a goal from early on in the tie following Brahim Diaz's decisive strike. Conte's decision to effectively tell his side not to attack played a bigger part in their disappointing exit than any off-day from certain players. Likewise in the FA Cup elimination at the hands of Sheffield United when naming undoubted star player Harry Kane among the substitutes – another major call that backfired.

Spurs boast a talented squad – they are fourth in the Premier League after all – but there is no doubt they are stronger in attacking sense than defensively. You have to go down as far as Wolves in 13th to find a side that has conceded more goals than Tottenham this season. In their most recent full season prior to Conte's arrival, they had conceded just 30 goals at the same stage. Conte's pragmatic approach, which fans would reluctantly accept if it equated to trophies, did not make Spurs any stronger defensively. It was all pain and no gain.

Backed by the board

Conte was afforded the type of backing that predecessors Mourinho and Pochettino could only have dreamt of. The reason expectations were so high at Spurs this campaign was because of the business they conducted early in the transfer window when bringing in the likes of Ivan Perisic, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison and – whether he wanted him or not – Djed Spence. Couple this with Kane staying at the club and Spurs' squad was arguably as strong as it has ever been.

There was also some truth to Conte's comments that Tottenham have perhaps become too used to failing – relatively speaking – regardless of who is in the dugout. But this was exactly the reason the Italian was brought on board and paid so handsomely by Levy – to turn around that endless cycle of falling short of landing silverware and at the same time continue to challenge for a top-four spot in the Premier League.

Yet Conte did not come close to lifting a cup and bowed out with a points-per-game return of 1.88, which puts him only marginally ahead of Andre Villas-Boas (1.83), who lasted two games fewer in charge of Tottenham. That, ultimately, is the legacy he is leaving behind.

Antonio Conte has left Tottenham by mutual consent, a week on from criticising the club and players in a remarkable outburst, with assistant Cristian Stellini to take charge until the end of the season.

Conte hit out after Spurs blew a two-goal lead in a 3-3 draw away to rock-bottom Southampton last Saturday, calling his players "selfish" and questioning Tottenham's lack of success during Daniel Levy's time as chairman,

He was reportedly asked by Levy and club chiefs to clarify those comments, apparently insisting his "20 years and they never won something" comment was aimed at the players, rather than his bosses.

But seemingly Conte's position had become untenable, with Spurs confirming the Italian's departure on Sunday, eight days on from his public tirade.

"We can announce that head coach Antonio Conte has left the club by mutual agreement," a Spurs statement read. 

"We achieved Champions League qualification in Antonio’s first season at the club. We thank Antonio for his contribution and wish him well for the future.

"Cristian Stellini will take the team as acting head coach for the remainder of the season, along with Ryan Mason as assistant head coach."

Conte already looked likely to leave Spurs in June when his contract was set to expire.

Media reports earlier this month suggested neither Conte nor Spurs wanted to extend the arrangement.

Fans had long been frustrated by the brand of football introduced by the former Chelsea boss, and recent results only made the atmosphere more toxic.

While Conte was absent after having gallbladder surgery, Spurs were knocked out of the FA Cup by Championship side Sheffield United on March 1, and a week later they were eliminated from the Champions League after a limp 0-0 draw at home to Milan, who had beaten them 1-0 in San Siro.

Although Spurs defeated Nottingham Forest 3-1 on March 11 to earn some momentary respite, their late collapse at St Mary's – followed by Conte's extraordinary rant – proved the final straw.

Conte departs with Spurs still firmly immersed in the race for Champions League qualification, sitting fourth in the Premier League.

However, Liverpool and Newcastle United – seven and two points behind respectively – have two games in hand.

Former Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino is among those linked with succeeding Conte, while Luis Enrique, Marco Silva and Julian Nagelsmann – officially sacked by Bayern Munich on Saturday – are also said to be contenders.

Antonio Conte has left Tottenham by mutual consent, a week on from criticising the club and players in a remarkable outburst, with assistant Cristian Stellini to take charge until the end of the season.

Conte hit out after Spurs blew a two-goal lead in a 3-3 draw away to rock-bottom Southampton last Saturday, calling his players "selfish" and questioning Tottenham's lack of success during Daniel Levy's time in charge.

He was reportedly asked by Levy and club chiefs to clarify those comments, apparently insisting his "20 years and they never won something" comment was aimed at the players, rather than his bosses.

But seemingly Conte's position had become untenable, with Spurs confirming the Italian's departure on Sunday.

"We can announce that head coach Antonio Conte has left the club by mutual agreement," a Spurs statement read. 

"We achieved Champions League qualification in Antonio’s first season at the club. We thank Antonio for his contribution and wish him well for the future.

"Cristian Stellini will take the team as acting head coach for the remainder of the season, along with Ryan Mason as assistant head coach."

Conte already looked likely to leave Spurs in June when his contract was set to expire.

Media reports earlier this month suggested neither Conte nor Spurs wanted to extend the arrangement.

Fans had long been frustrated by the brand of football introduced by Conte, and recent results only made the atmosphere more toxic.

While Conte was absent after having gallbladder surgery, Spurs were knocked out of the FA Cup by Championship side Sheffield United on March 1, and a week later they were eliminated from the Champions League after a limp 0-0 draw at home to Milan, who had beaten them 1-0 in San Siro.

Although Spurs beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 on March 11 to earn some momentary respite, their late collapse at St Mary's – followed by Conte's extraordinary rant – proved the final straw.

Conte departs with Spurs still firmly immersed in the race for Champions League qualification, sitting fourth in the Premier League.

However, Liverpool and Newcastle United – five and two points behind, respectively – still have two games in hand.

Former Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino is among those linked with succeeding Conte, while Luis Enrique, Marco Silva and Thomas Tuchel are also said to be contenders.

Steven Gerrard added further fuel to speculation over Liverpool's move for Jude Bellingham after telling the midfielder his development is well ahead of his own progress at the same age.

Bellingham impressed once again as England cruised past Ukraine with a 2-0 victory in Sunday's Euro 2024 qualifying clash and joined Gerrard on the Wembley Stadium touchline at full-time.

The former Reds captain, speaking as a pundit on Channel 4, lavished high praise on the Borussia Dortmund midfielder, who is reportedly a target of Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester City.

"You're a lot further ahead than when I was your age, so you're going in the right direction that's for sure," Gerrard told Bellingham.

When pressed on how Bellingham is further developed than ex-Liverpool and England star Gerrard, he added: "I never had that power and strength until I was probably 22, 23.

"So he is definitely more physically developed than me. He's more confident than me on the ball in terms of what he will try. And I'm not saying that just being modest, it's the truth, I think he's further on than what I was at 19.

"I got to where I wanted to get to and he'll get to where he wants to get to if he carries on doing what he's doing.

"He's in a fantastic place. Everything else around him he just needs to park it up and keep playing well and everything else will take care of itself."

It was not the first time Gerrard has lauded the teenage star, offering in January to take Bellingham out for dinner and talk about his future, suggesting a move to England and Liverpool would benefit his career.

Bellingham was quick to return the favour, praising the impact Gerrard had as Liverpool captain during his playing career.

He said: "The things that Stevie could do, the way he could carry a team and single-handedly win a game. He could do everything as a midfielder.

"I've said it multiple times that I look up to you and your game."

While a transfer-window battle awaits for the signature of one of Europe's hottest prospects, Bellingham continues to enjoy the learning experience of playing with England.

The former Birmingham City midfielder has already captained Dortmund this season and, while appreciating patience will be required, said leading his country out would be the greatest honour in football.

"That would be the biggest dream, and the biggest honour in football I think is to captain your country," he continued.

"There's a long pecking order that I highly respect and I'll wait my turn. In the meantime it's picking up what I can learn from them. This is the best place to do it.

"We should be looking to win every game. You set yourself a standard and an expectation and it's important you match that. We have to carry that on for the rest of the qualification campaign."

Mateo Retegui was on target once again as Italy triumphed 2-0 at Malta to record their first victory in Euro 2024 qualifying.

Argentina-born Retegui scored on his international debut in Thursday's 2-1 defeat to England and found the net once more with a simple 15th-minute opener three days later.

Matthew Guillaumier's own goal 12 minutes later offered Roberto Mancini's side complete control at Ta' Qali National Stadium, with Malta rarely threatening a response.

Victory leaves Italy three points behind embryonic Group C leaders England, who eased past Ukraine by the same scoreline earlier on Sunday.

Malta almost grabbed an unlikely fifth-minute lead but captain Gianluigi Donnarumma rescued Italy with a fine stop against Alexander Satariano when one-on-one.

That missed chance proved pivotal as an unmarked Retegui headed home from Sandro Tonali's corner soon after, before Wilfried Gnonto limped off injured.

Guillaumier turned into his own net from Emerson's inviting cross as Italy furthered their lead, though Henry Bonello denied substitute Vincenzo Grifo to keep the scoreline respectable at half-time.

A frantic scramble inside the Italy area offered Mancini's visitors a rare second-half scare before Bonello thwarted a fizzing Bryan Cristante attempt.

Gianluca Scamacca's inventive acrobatic effort forced another smart Bonello save as Italy cruised to their first win on the road to Germany 2024.

What does it mean? Italy back on track after England disappointment

Italy lost for a first time in 41 European Championship qualifiers after failing to deliver against England in Naples but responded with an assured performance at lowly Malta.

With fellow qualification hopefuls Ukraine brushed aside by England in the second round of matches, Italy may hope for a simple qualification path by finishing second in Group C.

It may not be all straightforward for Mancini's men, though, with Ukraine by no means pushovers and two clashes to follow with North Macedonia, who eliminated Italy in the World Cup play-offs last year.

Rampant Retegui

Mancini has repeatedly fielded questions over his selection decisions to call up Retegui, who qualified for the Azzurri because of his grandfather's Italian passport.

Retegui silenced the critics once again, joining Riccardo Orsolini (November 2020), Enrico Chiesa (June 1996) and Giorgio Chinaglia (September 1972) as the only players to score in their first two Italy appearances.

Sorry Satariano

In stark contrast to the in-form Retegui, Satariano struggled against the experienced Alessio Romagnoli and centre-back partner Giorgio Scalvini.

The Malta striker faltered from a gilt-edged first-half opportunity and managed just seven passes before being replaced in the 64th minute, while even Italy goalkeeper Donnarumma enjoyed more than Satariano's 24 touches.

What's next?

Italy are not in action until their Nations League semi-final against Spain on June 15, while Malta host England in Euro 2024 qualifying the day after.

Haiti, Canada, Costa Rica and Honduras all qualified for the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup following the results of their matches on Saturday in the 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League.

Haiti defeated Montserrat 4-0 to claim the top spot in Group B of League B to clinch their Gold Cup place.

 Canada topped Curacao 2-0 to secure at least a second-place finish in Group C of League A, thus qualifying them for the Gold Cup. Even though they were not in action, the Canada win also assured Honduras a berth in this summer’s Gold Cup as well.

 Costa Rica will also play in the Gold Cup again after rallying late from a 1-0 deficit to claim a 2-1 win in Martinique in Group B of League A.

 Haiti, Canada, Costa Rica and Honduras join the United States, Mexico, El Salvador, Panama and Jamaica as teams that have punched their ticket to this summer’s tournament.

 The winners and second-place finishers from the League A groups and the winners of each group in League B group will directly for the Gold Cup.

 The second-place teams from the League B groups and the third-place teams from League A will join the winners of each League C group in the Gold Cup Prelims.

Gareth Southgate praised the ruthlessness of Bukayo Saka after his starring role in England's 2-0 win over Ukraine.

England made it six points from two Euro 2024 qualifiers with a routine win at Wembley on Sunday.

Saka, a leading light in Arsenal's challenge for the Premier League title, supplied the assist for Harry Kane's opener in the 37th minute.

He then made it 2-0 three minutes later by bending a magnificent long-range strike into the top-right corner, his eighth goal for the Three Lions.

"It is a top-level finish [from Saka]," Southgate told Channel 4. 

"That is the ruthless part he has added to his game in the last 18 months or so. There were times you weren't sure he was going to finish, but now he has that confidence in front of goal."

England were in control throughout, with Ukraine never looking likely to produce a comeback in a game where they did not manage a shot on target.

The command England enjoyed naturally delighted Southgate, who also had plaudits for James Maddison, the Leicester City playmaker creating five chances in an impressive showing.

"The risk is that when you have control of the game you have the odd sloppy pass, but the application throughout was excellent," added Southgate.

"We have broken down a lot of barriers over a period of time. We still had that question mark over some of the bigger teams. 

"We are starting to win those games now but there is still lots of room for improvement. 

"To back up the Italy result was important, but there is still room to grow."

"We are always trying to think about now and what is next. We did that with James Maddison today. We thought it was a good game to see him.

"He was defensively very solid. It was nice to get Ivan Toney on the pitch as well. We will always look at people, but we have to qualify and we can't take that for granted."