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THERE was joy and despair for two Burnley players on the international stage this week as Axel Tuanzebe scored the winning goal to fire DR Congo to the World Cup but Martin Dúbravka and Armando Broja both suffered play-off semi final heartache.
Tuanzebe produced the defining moment of DR Congo’s play-off campaign as his extra-time winner against Jamaica secured the Leopards a place at this summer’s World Cup for the first time in 52 years.
The centre-back completed the full 120 minutes of a tense play-off final, with the tie goalless after normal time before he arrived in the box to steer home a corner 10 minutes into the first period of extra-time.
That strike proved enough to settle the contest and cap a memorable night for Tuanzebe, who will now head to the tournament on the back of one of the most significant goals of his international career.
At the other end of the emotional spectrum, Dúbravka suffered play-off disappointment with Slovakia. The goalkeeper played the full 90 minutes in Bratislava in a dramatic semi-final, but his side were edged out 4-3 by Kosovo in a seven-goal thriller that ended their hopes of reaching the World Cup finals. Dúbravka remained involved in the camp and was on the bench on Tuesday night as Slovakia bounced back with a 2-0 friendly win over Romania.
Armando Broja also found himself on the wrong side of World Cup play-off drama with Albania. The striker came off the bench for 22 minutes in their semi-final against Poland but was unable to turn the tide as his country slipped to defeat and missed out on a place in the final.
He was handed a longer run-out on Tuesday, playing the first half of a friendly against Ukraine, though Albania again fell narrowly short in a 1-0 loss.
Elsewhere, the were three more Clarets on international duty.
Lyle Foster clocked up more valuable minutes with South Africa in a double-header against Panama. The forward started both friendlies, playing 72 minutes of a 1-1 draw in the first meeting before featuring for the first half of a 2-1 defeat in the second game. Despite the results, Foster’s involvement underlines his continuing importance to Bafana Bafana’s attacking plans.
Lesley Ugochukwu, meanwhile, enjoyed a productive break with France’s under-21s, starting and completing 90 minutes in both of their Euro qualifying fixtures. The midfielder was part of an impressive 5-1 win over Luxembourg in their opening game before helping Les Bleus back that up with a 2-1 home victory against Iceland on Monday. Those results leave France U21s sitting top of their qualifying group and well placed in their bid to reach next summer’s finals.
Young goalkeeper Max Weiß rounded off the Clarets’ international involvement with time in the Germany under-21s camp. He was an unused substitute in their Euro qualifier against Greece on Tuesday night but added further experience to his growing international CV. The outing with Germany’s next generation capped a busy international window for Burnley’s contingent, who will now return to club duty with a mix of confidence, experience and, in Tuanzebe’s case, a World Cup place secured.