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Milos Kerkez played 86 minutes in Hungary’s crucial World Cup qualifying win over Armenia on Thursday.
Marco Rossi’s side battled to claim a 1-0 victory in Group F on a seismic night of World Cup qualifying action. Hungary’s win, which was achieved by a Barnabas Varga goal in the 33rd minute, was coupled with a shock result in Dublin, which means the fates of three nations will be decided on Sunday.
The Republic of Ireland beat Portugal 2-0 thanks to an outstanding performance from ex-Liverpool man Caoimhin Kelleher, with Cristiano Ronaldo sent off at the Aviva Stadium. It means Hungary’s meeting with Ireland on Sunday will determine who finishes second in the group and earns a playoff spot.
Hungary is currently a point ahead of Ireland, but could still qualify automatically if Portugal’s losing streak stretches to two matches when it takes on Armenia. Hungary trails Portugal by two points in the table.
As for Thursday’s win in Yerevan, Kerkez put in a solid performance, playing 86 minutes.
Hungary dominated the first half but found things more difficult after the break, and had to withstand and renewed Armenian push. Rossi described the second period as Hungary’s worst 45 minutes of the qualification campaign.
As for Kerkez, he earned a 6/10 player rating from Hungarian news outlet Nemzeti Sport, a score only three players surpassed.
“He started actively, in the 18th minute he tried to start Dominik Szoboszlai, who was coming out at a good pace, but he passed long, after his next save the ball went to his feet, there was uncertainty in him,” claimed the ratings article.
“In the 32nd minute he started brilliantly, but he passed it badly, but at the same time he played football with determination. After the break he had some astonishing solutions, balls kicked to his feet, as if his self-confidence had disappeared a little in Liverpool.”
Statistics-based WhoScored gave Kerkez a 7.0/10 performance review.
Kerkez earned his 28th international cap on Thursday and continued his record of starting all five World Cup qualifying matches.
That is not the case at club level, where Kerkez has lost his place to Andy Robertson at left-back following a disappointing start to life at Anfield after his summer move from Bournemouth.
Kerekz has not started Liverpool’s last three matches, including two in the Premier League. The former AC Milan youngster had previously started the first nine league matches.
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