Norway on the verge of reaching the finals, England one victory after the defeat of Serbia

Norway is on the verge of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup after beating Israel 5-0 on Saturday thanks to a hat-trick from Erling Haaland.

Denied twice by Israeli goalkeeper Daniel Peretz from the penalty spot after the referee ordered his initial shot replayed, Haaland doubled Norway’s lead with a right-footed shot after an own goal by Anan Khalaili gave the hosts the lead.

Another own goal, this time from Idan Nachmias, made it 3-0 when Peretz’s clearance bounced off the defender and into the net.

Haaland then made history with a pair of headers to complete his hat-trick, the Manchester City striker reaching 51 goals in 46 appearances for his country.

With that figure, Haaland became the fastest player to score 50 or more goals for his country, breaking Harry Kane’s record of 50 in 71 for England.

Norway will not play another qualifying match until November. However, six points clear of Italy in Group I and a huge goal difference of 26, Norway will almost certainly have a place in the finals for the first time since 1998 if it beats Estonia next month, or if Italy loses at home to Israel on Tuesday.

Estonia 1-3 Italy

Italy made it three wins in three under the leadership of Gennaro Gattuso to keep their automatic qualification hopes alive.

Moise Kean opened the scoring in the fourth minute when he took advantage of a pass from Federico DiMarco and slotted into the bottom corner, although Kean exited 11 minutes later with an ankle injury.

Mateo Retegui had a penalty saved by Karl Hein on the half hour mark, but eight minutes later the striker atoned for that mistake with a first shot after a rebound from Riccardo Orsolini.

Francesco Pio Esposito’s first Italian goal boosted the Azzurri’s dominance in the 74th minute, although the three-goal margin was short-lived when Gianluigi Donnarumma launched a cross that allowed Rauno Sappinen to close the gap.

But that was only a consolation, and Italy can move within three points of Norway by beating Israel. Gattuso will be without centre-back Alessandro Bastoni due to suspension after the Inter Milan centre-back was reprimanded.

Spain 2-0 Georgia

Portugal, Spain’s neighbor on the Iberian Peninsula, needed Ruben Neves’ goal in the 91st minute to beat Ireland 1-0. Portugal are five points clear of Hungary, who beat Armenia 2-0 in Group H. They will qualify on Tuesday if they defeat Hungary and Armenia fail to win against Ireland.

La Roja is on its way to qualifying in an equally comfortable way.

Yeremy Pino set Spain on course for a routine victory over Georgia when he took advantage of Robin Le Normand’s cross from Pedri in the 24th minute.

Ferran Torres failed to convert a penalty five minutes later, but a powerful free kick from Mikel Oyarzabal in the 64th minute made it three wins out of three.

Spain is three points behind Turkey, who beat Bulgaria 6-1, at the top of Group E. In fact, they will be assured of qualification on Tuesday if they beat Bulgaria on Tuesday and Turkey loses to Georgia.

Serbia 0-1 Albania

England will book their ticket to the finals on Tuesday with a victory over Latvia after Serbia suffered a home defeat in Belgrade.

Rey Manaj scored what turned out to be the winning goal for Albania in first-half stoppage time when he fired a volley with his right foot.

Albania moves into second place in Group K, four points behind England after having played one more match. The Three Lions will take an unassailable seven-point lead at the top with victory in Latvia, which they drew 2-2 against minnows Andorra on Saturday.