International Football
Welcome to The Briefing, where every Monday this season, The Athletic will discuss some of the biggest questions from the weekend’s football.
With the Premier League on hold and international matches taking centre stage, there was no top-flight domestic action to enjoy.
But do not worry, because there was an assortment of World Cup qualifying games with some entertaining, poignant and surprising sub-plots for us to enjoy.
Then, of course, there was England. Or rather, Thomas Tuchel’s England — try saying it out loud without your inflection hinting at deflation — who have yet to fully click into gear during their functional plod towards assured qualification for next summer’s tournament.
