Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
erling holland While continued his devastating form in front of goal with a hat-trick for Norway portugal It was too late to defeat the Republic of Ireland.
otherwise, Steven Gerrard Excluded himself from contention for Rangers job scotland Will try to boost its hopes of reaching the World Cup with a win belarus On Sunday.
Holland scored a hat-trick against Israel
Haaland continued his impressive start to the season after scoring a hat-trick in Norway’s 5–0 World Cup qualifying win over Israel in Oslo.
The Norway international saw his sixth-minute spot-kick saved by Daniel Peretz, who denied him again after retaking the kick, but in the end it did not matter as he netted his 18th goal in his last nine matches for club and country.
The Manchester City striker scored Norway’s second goal between his two goals from Anan Khalili and Idan Nachmias.
Haaland won his 46th cap and scored his 50th goal for his country when he nodded in Antonio Nussa’s cross and the pair combined again as the in-form forward grabbed his third goal of the night.
Portugal late to break Ireland’s heart
Ruben Neves scored the World Cup qualifying winner in injury time against the Republic of Ireland after Cristiano Ronaldo saw his penalty saved by Caoimhin Kelleher.
Portugal had the chance to take the lead with 15 minutes to go when Slovakian referee Ivan Kruzliak awarded a spot-kick after Francisco Trincao’s shot hit Darra O’Shea’s arm, but Ronaldo stepped up and fired his shot into the center of the net which was blocked by Kelleher’s legs.
However, Neves proved the hero in the first minute of second-half stoppage-time when he nodded Francisco Trincao’s cross past Kelleher.
Gerrard out of race for Rangers job
The PA news agency believes Gerrard was linked with a move back to Rangers following Russell Martin’s sacking, but has ruled himself out of the running for a return.
The 45-year-old is understood to have had constructive discussions with the club but felt it was not the right time to return to his former club, where he won the title in 2021.
In an interview with the ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents’ podcast released this week, Gerrard revealed he has “a bit of unfinished business” in management.
Scotland continues its World Cup journey against Belarus
Scotland host Belarus on Sunday as they look to put themselves in good position to qualify for the World Cup.
Scotland boss Steve Clarke will be looking to take them to a World Cup final for the first time since 1998 and is hoping to erase the “hurt” of being left out of the squad for the 1990s.
He said, “I wanted to go as a player but I couldn’t achieve it. I came very close when I was in the pre-World Cup squad in 1990. It hurt.”
“It’s still a bit sad that I haven’t been to the World Cup with my country – so I’ve got the chance to do that now.”
what’s going on today
Scotland will aim to put themselves in realistic position to qualify for next year’s World Cup when they face Belarus in Group C.
The Netherlands will look to take another step towards World Cup qualification when they take on Finland.