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San Marino won their first ever competitive match by beating Liechtenstein 1-0 in the Nations League, 20 years since their only other victory, also against Liechtenstein.
The Nations League D game was hardly a clash of the titans, with San Marino bottom of Fifa’s rankings at 210th and Liechtenstein 199th, but Nicko Sensoli’s goal in the 53rd minute will make him a national hero.
San Marino’s only other success came in their 69th game, a 1-0 win over Liechtenstein in a 2004 friendly.
Their fans have endured 140 matches without a win since then and the 19-year-old Sensoli’s goal sparked wild celebrations at the San Marino stadium.
🇸🇲 SAN MARINO WIN A GAME FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 20+ YEARS & A COMPETITIVE MATCH FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!!!
— The Sweeper (@SweeperPod) September 5, 2024
History is made as the worst team in the FIFA rankings (210th) finally end the longest winless run in international football history (140 games dating back to April 2004)!!! pic.twitter.com/xbB3M2WQUE
Sensoli was not even born when San Marino last won, and there was a long wait for the final whistle with eight minutes of added time before victory was confirmed to leave the hosts top of three-team Group 1, which also includes Gibraltar.
Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo also scored his 900th goal in Portugal’s 2-1 Nations League victory over Croatia.
The 39-year-old looked emotional after reaching the milestone in the 34th minute of the clash in Lisbon, converting Nuno Mendes’ cross.
The strike, Ronaldo’s first since June, extended his record haul of international goals to 131.
That put Portugal two up following Diogo Dalot’s opener, but the Manchester United defender scored an own goal before half-time to make it a nervy second half.
Elsewhere, European champions Spain were held to a goalless draw by Serbia in Belgrade, while Switzerland had Nico Elvedi and Granit Xhaka sent off in their 2-0 defeat by Denmark.
Patrick Dorgu scored the opening goal in the 82nd minute, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg adding the second following Xhaka’s dismissal for a second yellow card.
Newcastle striker Alexander Isak scored twice in Sweden’s 3-1 victory over Azerbaijan, Slovakia defeated Estonia 1-0 and 10-man Bulgaria drew 0-0 with Belarus.
