GINI SHOWS THE DUTCH OF CLASS

LIVERPOOL midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum scored twice as Holland won 2-1 in Belarus yesterday to take a giant step towards qualification.

Wijnaldum, a Kop hero after scoring twice in that epic 4-0 win against Barcelona last season, opened the scoring in the 32nd minute with a closerange header and then hit a scorching shot from outside the box for his second nine minutes later.

It moved the Dutch to 15 points from six matches but just a few hours later they were joined on that mark by Germany, who won 3-0 in Estonia despite seeing Emre Can, Wijnaldum’s former Liverpool teammate, sent off after just 14 minutes (below).

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan scored twice for the Germans

The two old rivals look nailed on to qualfy for the finals next summer but Northern Ireland, who face the Czech Republic in a friendly tonight, are only three points behind in third place.

Former Newcastle star Wijnaldum (top) had to stretch to get onto the end of a delicate chip from Quincy Promes for his opening goal. He then collected the ball outside the home team’s penalty area and took two steps before unleashing a rocket of a shot that gave goalkeeper Aleksandr Gutor no chance.

But the Dutch were made to sweat after half-time as the home team pulled a goal back though Stanislav Dragun in the 53rd minute.

Manchester United flop Alexis Sanchez could be set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after he suffered a dislocated ankle in Chile’s 0-0 draw with Colombia in a friendly in Alicante.

Sanchez, on loan at Inter Milan, was taken off in the 88th minute.