Ronaldo could miss two World Cup games after red; qualifying latest: football news – live | Soccer

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World Cup qualification action tonight is brought to you by the Groups A, G and L (note: for me, Group L just sounds too far into the alphabet but there we go).

Group A features Slovakia v Northern Ireland and, while the latter are guaranteed a playoff spot after topping their Nations League group, they could do Germany a favour(!) by taking at least a point off Slovakia. Germany face Luxembourg this evening, but the final match is Germany v Slovakia in a likely playoff for top spot. A reminder that Germany lost the first fixture between those two sides, 2-0 in September.

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Thanks David – on the subject of England World Cup songs: Iâ€m obviously partial to the epic 90s duo of my youth (World in Motion/Three Lions).

However I also have a guilty soft spot for Ant and Decâ€s Weâ€re on the Ball and I can recite the passing sequence – “itâ€s Neville to Campbell, Campbell to Rio, Rio to Scholsey†etc – from start to finish off by heart. Yet I can remember next to nothing of my GCSE French. How useful.

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Right, time for me to hand you over to Alex Reid while I head out in the pouring rain for supplies.

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Hereâ€s Portugal coach Roberto Martinez defending Cristiano Ronaldo for the elbow on the Republic of Irelandâ€s Dara Oâ€Shea that could lead to the skipper missing the first two group games of the 2026 World Cup finals.

FIFAâ€s disciplinary code states violent conduct should lead to a suspension of at least three matches, as should any offence of assault, including “elbowing, punching, kicking, biting, spitting at or hitting an opponentâ€. Ronaldo will definitely serve a one-match ban for his red card in the 2-0 defeat in Dublin, meaning he misses Portugalâ€s final qualifier against Armenia on Sunday, but then itâ€s in Fifaâ€s hands as to whether that suspension is increased to three games.

Martinez said of Ronaldo: “The red card is just a captain that has never been sent off before in 226 games – I think that just deserves credit – and today, I thought it was a bit harsh because he cares about the team.

“He was 60 minutes or 58 minutes in the box being grabbed, being pulled, being pushed and obviously when he tries to get away from the defender. I think the action looks worse than what it actually is, I donâ€t think itâ€s an elbow, I think itâ€s a full body, but from where the camera is, it looks like an elbow. But we accept it.

“The only thing that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth is at the (pre-match) press conference, (the Ireland) coach (Heimir Hallgrimsson) was talking about the aspect of the referees being influenced, and then a big centre-half falls on the floor so dramatically at the turn of Cristianoâ€s body.â€

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An e-mail from Kieran McHugh.

“We all know that the best World Cup song is This Time by the 1982 World Cup squad. Whether itâ€s comb and paper or a kazoo may never be known, but itâ€s a cracking song and the video demonstrates Shilts†lip syncing is up there with Milli Vanilli. However as a resident of Loughton, Essex I have further information that may be of interest. News in fact of a blue plaque in Loughton that celebrates the former home of Ron Greenwood. The house number? 22. Of course!â€

A No 2 hit in 1982. Share

A song now to hopefully inspire the Republic of Ireland to World Cup qualification. Remember this? Mick McCarthy on drums after 31 seconds. Produced by U2â€s Larry Mullen.

The Republic of Irelandâ€s official Italia ‘90 World Cup ditty.Share

Exciting news from Norway where Erling Haaland was seen coming out of a local restaurant with a massive stash of cheeseburgers after scoring a brace in the 4-1 win over Estonia. Experts reckon the celebratory haul was significant, with claims of “60 to 70 cheeseburgers†in some outlets. Haaland, age 25, was still wearing his Norway training gear when emerging from the fast food establishment. More when we have it.

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Shall we have some World Cup songs?Letâ€s start with England. This is often forgotten and overshadowed by 1970â€s ‘Back Home†and 1982â€s ‘This Time (Weâ€ll Get It Right)‘ but I rather like 1998â€s ‘(How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the Worldâ€. I mean, the Spice Girls are in the video, it was written by Ian McCulloch, Johnny Marr and the fella out of Ocean Colour Scene. Released on Juxtaposition Records. Didnâ€t get to No.1. Good, didnâ€t want it to. Next.

The Spice Girls are on top of the world before the 1998 World Cup. Photograph: Dave HoganShare

Updated at 06.27 EST

A brief departure from international musings. Then again, not quite as two England starters from last night appear in this list curated by Danel Harris.

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England analysis. Five pointers from the Wembley win, courtesy of Jacob Steinberg. Nico Oâ€Reilly and Marcus Rashford both feature.

“The dream scenario is Marcus Rashford becoming Englandâ€s Son Heung-min. Kane loved dropping off and releasing Son when they were teammates at Tottenham.â€

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Some Thomas Tuchel quotes from Englandâ€s 2-0 win. The German was delighted with the impact of his substitutes which included Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden.

“This is not about building a starting XI, itâ€s about building a team. And that means that sometimes, theyâ€re all big players in their club, theyâ€re all used to play, theyâ€re all disappointed. This is normal, but they buy into this idea of building a team and this is what we want, this is what we need, there is no other way around it.â€

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Updated at 05.41 EST

You want content? How about this for content, then: Luis Rubiales having eggs flung at him during during the presentation of his new book in Madrid. Not only that, the disgraced former Spanish football federation president claimed the flinger was his uncle.

Zapruder footage here. You have to say that the disgraced former Spanish football federation president takes the second egg well. Quite the spin to catch it on his cool jacket, ensuring the egg doesnâ€t strike his cool white t-shirt and cool light blue jeans. Would disgraced presidents from other football federations have shown such mobility in a tight area?

A reminder that Rubiales was convicted of sexual assault for a forced kiss on the player Jenni Hermoso after Spain won the Womenâ€s World Cup.

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Updated at 05.34 EST

Hereâ€s Barney Ronayâ€s take on last nightâ€s game at Wembley and the big talking point: Englandâ€s No 10.

“Tuchel has been very clear. He wants a structure not a group of the coolest guys, a selection by aura. And in many ways it worked here as on 65 minutes, with England already 1-0 up, we finally got it, the shootout of the No 10s. We got energy, mood-shift, a four-man blazing squad entering the field of play: Jude, Phil, Eberechi Eze and, er, Jordan Henderson.â€

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The World Cup starts in 209 days. It seems quite a while yet but if youâ€re thinking about committing to the 2026 Panini sticker album, itâ€s probably worth putting aside some cash now. With 48 teams involved, this ainâ€t going to be cheap.

Iâ€ve asked AI to run the numbers. “It will likely cost well over £1,000 to fill the 2026 Panini World Cup sticker album, potentially reaching as high as £1,500, due to the increase in the number of teams and general inflation. While the theoretical minimum cost, assuming no duplicates, is much lower (around £120-£130), the practical cost is much higher because of the high probability of getting duplicate stickers.†Quote this to your football-mad 10-year-old nearer the time.

In related news, I had a rummage the other night and found three spare Robertos from the 1978 World Cup collection. Does anyone know if the Brazilian striker is worth much?

Gabriel Jesus and Casemiro – but no Roberto. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The GuardianShare

Updated at 06.33 EST

A World Cup qualifying quiz question. In the European section, only one other team apart from England have gone through qualifying with a perfect record so far? Donâ€t look down if you want to try and make a guess.

A clue: they havenâ€t played in the finals since France ‘98.

A second clue: they have a big lad up front.

Yes, the answer is Norway, who have won seven out of seven after beating Estonia 4-1 in Oslo last night. Erling Haaland helped himself to another couple and now has 14 goals in qualifying.

Technically, they havenâ€t yet qualified as Italy, who they play away in the final game, could still join Norway on 21 points. However, check the goal difference: Norway +29, Italy +12. So just a 17-goal swing then.

Norwayâ€s Erling Haaland is congratulated after scoring against Estonia. Photograph: Jonas Been Henriksen/EPAShare

Updated at 06.18 EST

Not wanting to spoil the party but itâ€s a still a big ask for the Republic of Ireland to qualify for the finals. To secure a play-off spot they need to secure victory over Hungary in Budapest on Sunday. Hungary stayed ahead of the Irish in Group F after Barnabás Varga headed home Dominik Szoboszlaiâ€s cross to secure a 1-0 win in Armenia.

The last time Hungary took part in a World Cup play-off they lost 12-1 on aggregate to Yugoslovia in 1997. What?! 12-1!!

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Which countries have qualified for the 2026 World Cup and how did they do it?Hereâ€s a very handy ‘Explainer†from Andy Martin. Twenty-nine of the 48 places have now been filled but some big names – Cameroon and Nigeria for example – will need to come through a playoff.

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Ronaldo could be suspended for World Cup group games

That red card for Ronaldo against the Republic of Ireland was his first in 226 appearances for Portugal. And the man himself certainly didnâ€t see it coming having come out with these famous last words before the match. “I really like the fans here. The support they give to their national team is lovely. For me, itâ€s a pleasure to come to play here again. I hope they donâ€t boo too much to me tomorrow. I swear that Iâ€m gonna try to be a good boy.â€

There could be some serious ramifications for Ronnie after his flailing arm on Dara Oâ€Shea. The red means heâ€s automatically banned for Portugalâ€s home game against Armenia on Sunday. But if judged as “serious foul play†by Fifa, that suspension would double to two matches and if classed as “violent conduct†the ban would be extend to three.

That, of course, would mean Ronaldo missing one, or even two, of Portugalâ€s opening group games in the 2026 finals. Iâ€m going to make a wild guess here… I donâ€t think that will happen.

Cristiano Ronaldoâ€s reaction to his red card after a VAR review in Dublin. Photograph: Ben McShane/Sportsfile/Getty ImagesShare

Updated at 06.43 EST

Back to England v Serbia and some player ratings. We have a ‘9†and a couple of ‘8sâ€. Press here to reveal Ed Aarons†scores on the doors from Wembley.

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Updated at 04.16 EST

Good morning! Before the deep dive, letâ€s start with the bread and butter: David Hytnerâ€s match report of England 2-0 Serbia.

“Too often, the final pass was missing. But what the manager did get was another win and another clean sheet. Count seven of each from seven qualifiers. The final one is against Albania in Tirana on Sunday. And, also, two lovely goals.â€

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Preamble

International breaks seem to go on for ages and weâ€re not even halfway through the latest one. Still, matters are being resolved and the picture of just who will be at next summerâ€s 2026 World Cup finals is becoming clearer.

England had already qualified ahead of last nightâ€s 2-0 win over Serbia but that didnâ€t stop the forensic analysis of Thomas Tuchelâ€s latest selection and Englandâ€s Wembley performance.

Weâ€ll bring you all the fallout from last nightâ€s game and also a round-up of events elsewhere where it was quite the night for the Republic of Ireland. For Cristiano Ronaldo, not so much.

And beyond World Cup qualifying, there appears to have been a family feud in Spain involving eggs. More on that shortly.

Righty, letâ€s get this thing going!

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