Nations League: Hungary to resume life in second tier – highlights

A 3-0 defeat to Türkiye in the Puskás Aréna on Sunday evening confirmed Hungary’s relegation from the top tier of the UEFA Nations League after two campaigns and means Marco Rossi’s side will play in Division B in the tournament’s next edition.

Battle for Nations League Division A

According to MLSZ, Hungary battled gamely for more than half an hour of their Nations League Division A/B play-off second leg in Budapest, but three unanswered goals from Türkiye ultimately sealed a 6-1 aggregate defeat and ensured Marco Rossi’s squad will play second-tier Nations League football for the first time since 2020.

An unfortunately and tightly-contested 3-1 defeat in Istanbul on Thursday meant that the odds were stacked against Hungary ahead of the second leg against Türkiye on Sunday evening, but they could take confidence from their two-and-a-half year unbeaten run at home and the return from injury of defender Márton Dárdai. Experienced duo Péter Gulácsi and Roland Sallai were both still absent with minor ailments though, added to which both Zsolt Nagy and András Schäfer were suspended, so Rossi kept faith with Dénes Dibusz in goal behind a back three of Attila Fiola, Willi Orbán and Márton Dárdai, the latter joined by his brother Bence in the starting line-up as Hungary fielded their first pair of brothers in the same team since Gábor and Ottó Vincze faced France in 2005. Bence started alongside Bálint Vecsei in centre midfield with Bendeguz Bolla on the right and Milos Kerkez on the left, a four-man midfield which supported attacking trio Dániel Gazdag on the right, central striker Barnabás Varga and captain Dominik Szoboszlai cutting in from the left.

It was Hungary, roared on by a near 60,000 crowd, who threatened first, Szoboszlai’s left-wing cross in the fourth minute finding Gazdag at the far post, but his low cross-shot couldn’t be diverted goalwards by Varga, whose eventual effort went wide of the left post. The hosts kept up the pressure and Szoboszlai sent a shot wide in the 17th minute before Gazdag was released by Orbán in the Türkiye penalty area, only for Cakir to stretch out his right hand to divert the ball away from goal.

Szoboszlai went close again just after the half-hour mark when his 25-metre free-kick thudded against the angle of the right post and crossbar, but just as it seemed as if a Hungary goal was almost certain to arrive, Fiola’s foul on Yüksek gave Türkiye a penalty which Çalhanoğlu duly dispatched into the bottom-left corner of Dibusz’s net.