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We have entered the first international break of 2019 as club football takes a backseat for the time being, with the national sides taking the centre stage.
FIFA international breaks offer confederations the chance to prosecute their qualifiers, while also providing those without official fixtures the opportunity to test themselves in friendly matches.
The glitz and glamour associated with club football mean that fans are more attuned to following club fixtures, with international breaks being seen as nothing more than unwelcomed distractions. Hence, most football followers look on with boredom and countdown the return of club football.
Differences in size and stature of most footballing countries, especially on the European scene also lends credence to this view, as most European qualifiers are essentially nothing but dead rubbers, offering the bigger countries and players a chance to pad up their stats.
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However, this viewpoint is not without its flaws as the international breaks sometimes serve us wonderful and entertaining fixtures. In this piece, we shall be taking a look at five must-watch matches during this international break.
#5 Belgium vs Russia
UEFA EURO Qualifiers (Group I)
21-03-2019
Belgium and Russia clash in what is sure to be one of the most entertaining fixtures during the first round of the EURO 2020 Qualifiers.
The Red Devils head into the tie as not just the favourites in their group, but also one of the favourites for the trophy itself next year, owing to the vast number of world-class players at their disposal.
Russia for their part would be confident of pulling a few scalps, buoyed on by their incredible performance at the last World Cup hosted on home soil.
For all the quality available to Belgium, they failed to make it to the semi-final of the first ever Nations League. They would still be hurting from this, and this clash could offer them an opportunity to make amends.
#4 Cameroon vs Comoros
CAF NATIONS Cup Qualifiers (Group B)
23-03-2019
Cameroon are responsible for giving the footballing fans two of the most legendary strikers to have played the game - Roger Milla and Samuel Eto'o. Whenever these two represented the Central African nation, The Indomitable Lions roared with pride, conquering the African continent and exhibiting themselves well on the global stage.
However, those days are long gone and Cameroonian football has descended to an all-time low, struggling to identify itself amidst numerous on-field and off-field issues.
Having initially been scheduled as the hosts of the 2019 Nations Cup which would have guaranteed them automatic qualification, a dramatic turn of events saw the nation stripped off the Nations Cup hosting rights by CAF, who awarded it to Egypt instead.
This turned Cameroon's qualification campaign on its head, meaning they had to now finish in the top two of Group B to progress to the tournament.
Heading into the final matchday, the side coached by Dutch legend Clarence Seedorf, have their fate in their own hands as they currently occupy the second spot in the group. They just need a draw against the visiting Comoros team to ensure progress.
#3 England vs Czech Republic
UEFA EURO Qualifiers (Group A)
22-03-2019
England are in one of the very best periods of their history - for all of the attention and hype surrounding the English national team, they have notoriously underperformed over the years and have a very scanty trophy cabinet when placed alongside other European heavyweights like Italy, Germany, Spain and France.
Their recent success has not been sparked by a 'Golden Generation' but rather by a bunch of united and young individuals, who form a solid team.
The Three Lions surprisingly made it all the way to the semi-finals of the World Cup, led by the Golden Boot winner Harry Kane. For those who felt it was a fluke, they followed it up with some impressive showings in the first ever UEFA Nations League, where they unexpectedly topped a group also containing Spain and World Cup runners-up Croatia, despite having a slow start.
It is with this renewed sense of purpose that England begin their qualification quest for EURO 2020, and in keeping with his promotion of youth, Gareth Southgate has named an extremely young squad including the likes of Trent-Alexander Arnold, Jadon Sancho, Callum Hudson Odoi, Ben Chilwell among others, with reports suggesting he could name a squad with an average age as young as 21 years.
The clash at Wembley sees England kick off their qualification against the Czech Republic who despite having fallen from the highs of the mid-noughties would fancy their chances against a vastly inexperienced England side.
#2 Argentina vs Venezuela
International friendly
22-03-2019
While this might be just a friendly match with no far-reaching consequence, it offers the exciting prospect of seeing Lionel Messi in his national colours once again after a long hiatus.
The Barcelona talisman has not represented Argentina since captaining them to their shambolic display at the World Cup last year.
For all of his greatness at club level, it is no hidden secret that Messi is yet to lead his nation to a national title and this anomaly is further exacerbated by the fact that the country is without an international trophy since 1991, despite the abundance of talents at their disposal.
The exhibition against Venezuela and three days later against Morocco offer Messi the opportunity to bond with his teammates ahead of the 2019 Copa America which could well be his last shot at a hoorah with La Albiceeste.
#1 Portugal vs Serbia
UEFA EURO Qualifiers (Group B)
25-03-2019
Another fixture which might not have garnered much attention but for the act that it signifies the return of new-Juventus-darling Cristiano Ronaldo to international action.
The 34-year-old has been breaking records and setting new standards in Turin with the Bianconerri but he has not been seen in national colours since Portugal got eliminated by Uruguay at the Round of 16 stage at the last World Cup.
In his absence, his international colleagues boosted their reputations immensely by impressively topping their Nations League group also containing Poland and Italy to qualify for the semi-finals, where they will face off against Switzerland on home soil to determine who progresses to the final.
But before then, they have to navigate their way around their EURO Qualification group and they have Serbia in their sights first and with Ronaldo having one eye on becoming the all-time international highest goalscorer and one can be sure that he would bring his A game on.
