Jordan Montgomery outpitched Justin Verlander with 6 1/3 shutout innings as the Texas Rangers took Game 1 of the American League Championship Series with Sunday's 2-0 win over the rival Houston Astros.

Leody Tavares backed Montgomery with a solo homer off Verlander as the red-hot Rangers improved to 6-0 during these playoffs after ending the regular season with an 18-24 finish.

That late slump enabled the defending World Series champion Astros to overtake Texas for the AL West title and home-field advantage for the series. Houston also won nine of 13 meetings with its fellow Lone Star State inhabitants during the regular season.

The Rangers got to Verlander in the second inning to take an early lead, as rookie Evan Carter legged out a double and crossed the plate on Jonah Heim's single. Tavares made it 2-0 by taking Verlander's offering over the right-field wall with one out in the fifth. 

Houston had its chances in between as it put two on in the third and loaded the bases in the fourth. Montgomery fanned All-Star slugger Yordan Alvarez to end the first threat, then struck out Martin Maldonado to put out the second after the Astros strung together three consecutive two-out singles.

The Astros didn't have another runner reach base off the left-hander, who retired the final eight hitters he faced while scattering five hits and a walk with six strikeouts. Three of those strikeouts came against Alvarez, who had gone 7 for 16 with four home runs in Houston's four-game dispatching of the Minnesota Twins in the Division Series.

A base-running blunder by Jose Altuve in the eighth ended the Astros' final good chance of the night.

Altuve drew a leadoff walk off Josh Sborz to prompt Rangers manager to summon reliever Aroldis Chapman, who was greeted by Alex Bregman's deep fly to left that was caught by Carter at the warning track. Altuve rounded second base on the play, but was called out after a replay review showed he failed to re-touch the bag while racing back to first.

Chapman finished off the inning without further damage before Jose Leclerc retired the Astros in order in the ninth.

Verlander lasted 6 2/3 innings and allowed six hits along with both Texas runs.

Game 2 of the series will take place Monday afternoon in Houston, which will send Framber Valdez to the mound opposite Nathan Eovaldi in a matchup of 2023 All-Stars. 

Damian Lillard scored 14 points in his first appearance in a Milwaukee Bucks uniform to help his new team to a 108-97 preseason victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.

Lillard added three assists and three steals in 22 minutes in his first NBA game for any team other than the Portland Trail Blazers, who traded the seven-time All-Star guard to Milwaukee on Sept. 27.

The 33-year-old spent 11 seasons with Portland and finished his tenure with a franchise-record 19,376 points, while his 5,151 assists rank second in team history.

Lillard requested a trade from the rebuilding Trail Blazers in July and was eventually sent to the Bucks, where he joined two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and a well-stocked veteran roster in a deal that has Milwaukee the preseason favourite to win the Eastern Conference.

Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting, and grabbed eight rebounds in a game Milwaukee never trailed in the second half against a Lakers team playing without a resting LeBron James.

Anthony Davis paced Los Angeles, which also played without 2023 postseason star Austin Reaves, with 16 points and seven rebounds in just 19 minutes. The eight-team All-Star added five assists. 

Peter O’Mahony believes Ireland’s beaten World Cup squad have “left Irish rugby in a better place” as he left question marks hanging over his own Test future.

Saturday evening’s heartbreaking 28-24 quarter-final defeat to New Zealand in Paris crushed the dreams of Andy Farrell’s men to mark the end of an era.

Captain Johnny Sexton and wing Keith Earls are confirmed as heading into retirement, with O’Mahony one of 17 members of his country’s 33-man squad aged 30 or over.

The Munster captain, who won his 100th cap against Scotland last weekend, is excited by the potential of the next generation but is unsure whether he will continue at international level.

“There’s a great group of young players there,” said the 34-year-old.

“Lots of players who aren’t here but who were in our squad can step up to the plate as well. I’ve no doubt this team will have left Irish rugby in a better place.

“We’ve achieved a huge amount – there’s no other way of putting it. There’s disappointment, obviously, but I think we can be proud of where we’ve left the jersey.

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“It’s about honouring the jersey and I think this group have left it in a good place.

“Will I come back? We’ll see. It’s tough one to take, as a lot of my friends won’t be back so I’ve a contract to the end of the year and we’ll see how we go after that.”

Ireland looked to have their best opportunity of World Cup glory.

Farrell’s side had topped the global rankings since securing a historic tour success over the All Blacks last summer, a period which included a Six Nations Grand Slam and a 17-match winning run.

But once again they fell at the quarter-final hurdle.

Speaking of Sexton and Earls, flanker O’Mahony said: “It’s tough to lose these guys in these tough circumstances. I’ve spent a lot of time with himself (Earls) and Johnny obviously.

“Probably every one of my caps had one or two of them in it, if not all of them. It’s tough to lose fellas like that – big characters, big players for us.

“Most importantly, big people, the best type of people, fellas who have your back all the time, good friends of mine, so it’s tough to say goodbye to them.

“It is the end of an era. You’ve a group of senior players who are moving on. There’s no other way of putting it.

“There’s a group of guys who won’t play for Ireland again who’ve had an incredible impact on Irish rugby.”

O’Mahony, who won the first of his 101 Ireland caps in 2012 and represented the British and Irish Lions in 2017, felt the dejected post-match atmosphere was the “toughest” he has faced.

Yet he also put the disappointment into perspective.

“Andy spoke really well, about how proud we should be of the last few years,” he said.

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“I thought he was very professional and very positive to be fair. It’s a tough dressing room, probably the toughest I’ve been in, to be honest.

“It’s a terribly tough pill to swallow. But look, there’s worse things going on in the world. We’ll understand that over the next 24 to 48 hours.

“I’m sure there’s lots of kids who we’ve inspired to take up the game and who might be in this position in 15 to 20 years’ time and you can look back and be proud of that.”

Antoine Dupont criticised the standard of refereeing after France crashed out of their home World Cup with a heartbreaking single-point defeat to reigning champions South Africa in Paris.

The Springboks edged an epic contest at Stade de France 29-28 to set up a semi-final showdown with England.

Les Bleus captain Dupont suffered major disappointment on his highly-publicised return from a fractured cheekbone and felt substandard officiating was partly to blame.

Asked about the performance of New Zealand referee Ben O’Keefe, the scrum-half replied: “Well, what did you think of it?

“It’s hard to talk about things because there is a lot of disappointment, a lot of frustration.

“There were a few clear things where the whistle wasn’t blown.

“I don’t want to be a bad loser and moan about the refereeing but I’m not sure the level of refereeing was up the level of the game today.”

A disconsolate Dupont was pictured with his hands on his head at full-time and was later in tears as he was embraced by his parents.

The 26-year-old was back in action just 24 days since sustaining the serious facial injury which threatened to prematurely end his tournament, donning a scrum-cap for added protection.

France flew out of the blocks and led 22-19 at the end of one of the most exhilarating opening 40 minutes in World Cup history in which the two teams shared six tries.

Eben Etzebeth returned from the sin-bin to help South Africa over the line with the only touchdown of a tighter second period, while Les Bleus were left to rue one of Thomas Ramos’ three conversion attempts being charged down by Cheslin Kolbe.

France head coach Fabien Galthie revealed prop Uini Atonio and lock Romain Taofifenua, the two oldest members of his squad, will retire and confirmed he intends to remain in his role.

French President Emmanuel Macron provided solace to his country’s players in the dressing room after the match.

“For four years we wrote a beautiful page of French history that the players can be proud of,” said Galthie.

“We can also be sad tonight because of the result.

“No regrets. You’re allowed to lose like we did today. We did everything to optimise our potential.”

Asked if there was a chance he may step down, the 54-year-old replied: “Well, no, I’ve got a contract to June 2028.”

Rob Page welcomed Wales putting automatic qualification for Euro 2024 in their own hands after admitting he had been “fighting fires” before the stunning 2-1 victory over Croatia.

Harry Wilson, winning his 50th cap, scored twice as Wales climbed above the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists in to second place in Group D.

The two teams are tied on 10 points, six behind group leaders Turkey who secured qualification by beating Latvia 4-0 on Sunday. Wales are second by virtue of having a better head-to-head record against Croatia after also drawing 1-1 with them in Split in March.

Wales’ win over Croatia, ranked sixth in the world and 27 places above the Dragons, came after pre-match reports that manager Page’s job could be in jeopardy.

Football Association of Wales chief executive Noel Mooney had said earlier in the week that a “serious review” would take place on Page’s position following the final group games against Armenia and Turkey next month. Page is currently just over 12 months into a four-year deal.

Page said: “I would say it’s the best performance (of his three-year reign), I am immensely proud.

“There was unnecessary noise coming into it, with me fighting fires. I didn’t need any player to speak, I see the players want to play for me.

“I had a text from the chief executive today, before that, not for five weeks.

“I just want to concentrate on the football, we are two games away from qualifying for another major tournament, a fourth in five.

“We believe we can do it. We need to do the same (in November) as we did in this camp.”

Wales had never beaten Croatia in seven previous attempts, drawing three and losing four.

But Wales had the better first-half chances – Dominik Livakovic denying Wilson and Neco Williams with smart saves – and took control after the break.

Wilson raced on to David Brooks’ pass to score with a splendid chip and then converted Daniel James’ cross with a glancing header.

Mario Pasalic ensured home anxiety 15 minutes from time with a close-range header, but Wales held on for a famous victory.

Page said: “In all aspects, how we defended against an excellent team with one of the best midfields in the world was outstanding.

“We are in a transition period where we’ve lost one of the best players in the world (Gareth Bale). We are introducing young players to strengthen us and improve us.

“Seven of our 11 are not starting for their club. Chris Mepham’s last game was against Latvia. Kieffer Moore isn’t playing for his club.

“But when they turn up for Wales they produce a performance like that. I am really proud of them as a group.

“The players are an incredible bunch and it’s in our hands now.

“I understand not everyone is going to be a fan of mine, but when you have a group of players playing like that for you, it makes you immensely proud.”

Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalic believes the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists face a tough task to qualify automatically after successive defeats to Turkey and Wales.

Dalic said: “It is going to be difficult. We understand it is not all in our hands any more. We have to believe that we are going to be able to turn this around.

“We just played both games without energy, we didn’t play well, we didn’t create any chances. Our opponent was more aggressive, tougher than us and we deserved to lose.”

Republic of Ireland coach Stephen Kenny insists he cannot allow himself to wonder what might have been after his sliding doors moment in Faro.

The 51-year-old will send his team into Euro 2024 qualifier battle with European minnows Gibraltar in the Algarve on Monday evening knowing their automatic qualification hopes are already over, and that even the chance of a wild card via the play-offs may be out of their grasp.

Just how different things could have been had his last visit to the Estadio Algarve, for a World Cup qualifier against Portugal in September 2021, not ended with a last-gasp Cristiano Ronaldo double which transformed a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory for the hosts – and established Ronaldo as international football’s leading scorer – is something upon which Kenny admits he has reflected since.

Kenny said: “You can’t dwell on things, but have I reflected on it? Of course.

“We were 1-0 ahead after 89 minutes and the game should be finished out. Cristiano Ronaldo has other ideas and the world record was on the line that night, so he was hugely motivated to break that.

“It was a very good performance that night. VAR intervened for an absolute cast-iron penalty to go 2-0 up in the second half, nailed-on penalty.

“That’s the way it goes. What ifs… there’s no point in complaining. You move on and that’s it.”

Ireland ultimately did not make it to last year’s World Cup finals, and neither will they be in Germany next summer unless their fortunes change markedly and they manage to secure a play-off spot and make it count.

There is even a complicated scenario in which they might be better off losing their final qualifier in the Netherlands next month depending on results elsewhere, although Kenny insists he is not even contemplating that.

He said: “No, it’s not something that’s really entered our heads. It’s not something that really we’d focus on. If we were to play any game, we’d play to win, any international game.

“We would just focus on Gibraltar tomorrow. It’s an international game that we want to win. We have to get a win under our belt tomorrow and I’m not really fixated on that scenario.”

Kenny, who confirmed that his contract would cover any play-off, has found himself in the firing line since Friday night’s 2-0 home defeat by Greece, although with World Cup finalists France and the Dutch also in Group B, the alarm bells starting ringing after their 2-1 reverse in Athens in June.

However, asked if he would resign should things go from bad to worse in Faro, he said: “I’m not considering resigning. My contact is to the end of the campaign and I will finish it.

“We want to finish the campaign strongly and we are very determined to do that. After that, it’s completely out of my control. I have no control over the rest.”

Jordan Henderson insists he will not walk away from international football despite being booed off the Wembley pitch by England fans on Friday night.

Eyebrows were raised when Henderson swapped his role as Liverpool skipper for the Saudi Pro League, joining Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq in a controversial £12million deal.

The midfielder had been a high-profile supporter of LGBTQ+ rights during his time at Anfield and last month apologised for any hurt he caused by moving to a country where homosexuality is illegal.

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There was no noticeable negative reaction towards him during September’s double-header against Ukraine and Scotland, but things were different when he captained England in their first home match since his controversial move.

There were murmurs when Henderson’s named was read out before the 1-0 friendly win against Australia but a vocal minority very audibly jeered when he was replaced in the second half.

“It’s not nice, your own fans (booing),” he said.

“Everybody has got their own opinion. I love playing for England, I have done for many years, that’s why I’m still here.

“I still want to play for England for as long as I possibly can and give everything for the team, for my country.

“To lead the team out meant an awful lot to me and my family. Another special night and we got the win which is the most important thing.

“But listen, people have got their own opinions. Whenever I bump into anyone on the street it’s always been positive stuff and nice things said.

“It won’t change who I am and what I do for this team and for my country. I give absolutely everything every time.”

England manager Gareth Southgate questioned those supporters who decided to boo his vice-captain, with Henderson admitting he was also unsure why – even if he accepted he would face criticism for his move to Saudi.

Asked if he understood the jeers, the 33-year-old replied: “Not really. I don’t know… if people want to boo if I’m playing in a different country, that’s fine.

“Like I said, everyone is going to have an opinion over when I’m playing over in Saudi.

“I’ve spoken in the past about the reasons for that. Whether people believe us or not is up to them.

“Of course it’s disappointing, but it won’t change what I do here. I want to keep playing and keep fighting and help the team become successful.

“I haven’t been surprised by that because I can understand the reasons in what they’re saying. I look at it from a different point of view, obviously.

“But I can understand it and I’ve got to take that on the chin.”

Asked about Southgate’s public support and continued selection, the former Sunderland youngster added: “Yes, the gaffer has been really good as always.

“I’ve always felt support and backing from him and the rest of the lads.

“It’s nice to know that you’ve got the backing of the manager and your team-mates but that’s never been in doubt for me. That’s always been the case.”

Henderson may have switched Merseyside for the Middle East but he feels enough at home to have already backed Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the 2034 World Cup.

The country abandoned a 2030 joint-bid with Greece and Egypt and announced their solo pitch on October 4 – with Henderson involved in the promotional video.

“By that time I think they will put on a pretty good World Cup, to be honest,” Henderson said about taking part in the bid.

“So I think that’s exciting times for them as a country and I think it will be a special tournament if they ended up getting it.

“I’ve been there for two months and there’s been no issues in terms of fans or anything like that.

“It is a long waiting time from now, but I think they’ll enjoy the experience there.

“When we look at Qatar, the way that they did the job there, it was a good tournament; I think the fans enjoyed the tournament and I think Saudi would be no different.”

Teenager Gavi’s solitary goal was enough for Spain to secure their Euro 2024 qualification with a 1-0 victory over Norway.

The 19-year-old midfielder scored his fifth international goal in his last 25 matches to put the 2008 and 2012 champions through, while also ending Norway’s hopes with Scotland the major beneficiaries of the result as they too qualified.

Georgia’s earlier 4-0 win over Cyprus had kept alive their slim hopes of staying in contention in Group A but Spain’s result ended that prospect.

Turkey qualified from Group D after a resounding 4-0 win over Latvia, with former Everton striker Cenk Tosun scoring two late goals.

However, Croatia slipped below Wales into third after Mario Pasalic’s 75th-minute goal was not enough to spark the comeback needed after Harry Wilson scored either side of half-time.

West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek’s 76th-minute penalty was enough for the Czech Republic to beat the Faroe Islands 1-0 in Group E.

But the group is still in the balance as Poland’s 1-1 draw at home to Moldova – Karol Swiderski cancelling out Ion Nicolaescu’s opener – kept them in in touch in third and fourth respectively.

Belarus’ hopes of finishing in the top two in Group I were ended after Switzerland scored twice in the last two minutes of normal time to snatch a 3-3 draw.

Manchester City defender Manuel Akanji and Burnley’s Zeki Amdouni both struck late on for the Swiss, who had taken a 28th-minute lead through Xherdan Shaqiri, to maintain their unbeaten record after Max Ebong, Denis Polyakov and Dmitri Antilevski appeared to have done enough to keep Belarus in the hunt.

Romania went top with a 4-0 victory over Andorra in which Alaves’ on-loan Rangers winger Ianis Hagi was on target.

The San Francisco 49ers lost two of their top playmakers to injury and ultimately suffered their first loss of the season, falling 19-17 to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

Star wide receiver Deebo Samuel was the first to exit, injuring his shoulder in the first quarter.

Later in the third quarter, Pro Bowl running back Christian McCaffrey sustained an oblique injury. He was officially announced as questionable to return, and was able to get back on the field, but after one carry, exited for good.

Before being ruled out, McCaffrey had 43 rushing yards on 11 carries and three receptions for nine yards with a touchdown.

McCaffrey, who was named to his second Pro Bowl last season, entered Week 6 leading the NFL with 510 rushing yards along with eight total touchdowns. With a TD reception against the Browns, he extending his consecutive game streak with a touchdown to 15 games - including the playoffs.

Samuel, who had just two rushes for 11 yards before getting hurt, came in with 20 catches for 302 yards and one TD. He also had 84 yards rushing on 16 attempts.

Facing the NFL's top defence, Brock Purdy and the depleted 49ers struggled to move the ball for much of the day.

San Francisco still had a chance to win, though, as Purdy marched the 49ers on a 52-yard drive to set up a potential game-winning field goal, but Jake Moody missed a 41-yard attempt in the final seconds.

It marked the first loss in a regular-season game for Purdy, who had won his first 10 such starts.

Purdy finished 12 of 27 for 125 yards with a touchdown and interception. He was also sacked three times.

The 49ers managed a season-low 215 yards of offence after racking up 421 total yards in last week's 42-10 win over the Dallas Cowboys.

Tournament hosts France bowed out of the World Cup in agonising fashion after losing by a point to defending champions South Africa as the Stade de France hosted another epic quarter-final that hung in the balance until the very last moment.

Just 24 hours after New Zealand edged out Ireland in a six-try thriller in northern Paris, the other two members of the world’s top four served up a last-eight showdown that somehow eclipsed it for drama and scintillating rugby.

On a frenzied night when France’s talismanic captain Antoine Dupont made his much-hyped return following a broken cheekbone – sporting a scrum-cap – Les Bleus were defeated 29-28 as the defiant Boks held on to set up a semi-final showdown with England at the same venue next Saturday.

Having experienced the hostility of the French crowd when they lost narrowly in Marseille last November, South Africa had been training with background noise blaring through speakers in the lead-up to the quarter-final.

The Boks’ efforts to combat the impact of the partisan home support looked futile in the early moments, however, as the French started like a train and threatened to blow their opponents away.

Les Bleus – eyeing a 19th consecutive home win – signalled their intent from the outset and Louis Bielle-Biarrey was desperately close to scoring in the second minute but he was just unable to get a firm enough hand on the ball to force it down after getting himself over the line on the left.

The French kept their foot to the floor, though, and they had their supporters in raptures in the fourth minute as prop Cyril Baille dotted over for an easy finish on the right following a ferocious maul towards the line after a quickly-taken lineout. Thomas Ramos added the extras.

South Africa, summoning the resolve of champions, managed to stem the blue tide and get themselves a foothold in the game. They levelled things up out of nothing as a high ball over the top bounced kindly for Kurt-Lee Arendse, who burst over the line, with Manie Libbok adding the conversion.

Ramos attempted to edge the French back in front with a penalty attempt from just shy of the halfway line but it lacked the required distance.

Remarkably, it was the Boks who got themselves ahead in the 18th minute when Damian de Allende forced his way over at the second attempt. Libbok – whose inconsistent kicking has become a talking point in this tournament – was off target with the conversion.

The frenzied start continued when French hooker Peato Mauvaka forced his way over on the right for the fourth try of the evening in the 22nd minute. Adding to the drama, Ramos’ conversion attempt was brilliantly charged down by Cheslin Kolbe.

That would ultimately prove crucial and the jet-heeled Kolbe had another big impact at the other end of the pitch five minutes later as he outpaced two French chasers to reach a clever kick through from Jesse Kriel and bolt over on the left. This time Libbok was on point with his conversion.

The French levelled things up again just after the half-hour when prop Baille pushed over for his second score, with Ramos converting.

The Boks suffered a blow at the end of the first half when lock Eben Etzebeth was yellow-carded for a head-on-head tackle on Uini Atonio. Ramos kicked the resulting penalty to ensure the French went in with a 22-19 lead at the end of one of the most exhilarating 40 minutes in Rugby World Cup history.

South Africa changed their half-back pairing early in the second half as they sent on Handre Pollard and Faf de Klerk for Libbok and Cobus Reinach, shortly before Etzebeth returned with no further damage done on the scoreboard in his absence.

With the pace of the game having subsided, Ramos stretched the French lead to six points with another penalty in the 54th minute.

However, the topsy-turvy nature of this titanic encounter continued and – just as France looked to have some control – the Boks got themselves a point ahead in the 67th minute when Etzebeth forced over for the seventh try of the night, converted by Pollard. And two minutes later, Pollard put his team four points to the good with a penalty.

Ramos reduced the deficit to a point with a kick of his own in the 72nd minute, setting up a grandstand finale, but the French were unable to muster one final score as their dreams of a first World Cup on home soil died.

Harry Wilson celebrated his 50th cap with a brilliant double as Wales boosted their Euro 2024 automatic qualification hopes with a 2-1 win over Croatia in Cardiff.

Wilson rewarded an excellent home performance with two clinical second-half strikes, enough to stave off a late Croatia rally that saw Mario Pasalic convert 15 minutes from time.

Wales came into the contest knowing victories in their final three group games were probably necessary to secure a top-two place and avoid the play-offs in March.

Rob Page’s side still have to work to do in November – away to Armenia and at home to group leaders Turkey – but upsetting the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists in such fashion offers great encouragement.

This win takes Wales into second place above Croatia by virtue of them having done better in their head-to-head ties, the Dragons having drawn their opening game of the campaign 1-1 in Split in March.

The result will ease the pressure on manager Rob Page, who awoke to newspaper headlines on Saturday morning linking Roy Keane to his job.

Page vowed he would shut out all external noise at his pre-match press conference in which he became visibly emotional, and that chatter will now surely dim after this result.

Victory in Latvia last month had boosted Wales, but Aaron Ramsey and Brennan Johnson had picked up injuries and were replaced by David Brooks, a scoring substitute in Riga, and Kieffer Moore.

Ben Davies took over the captaincy in Ramsey’s absence as Wilson won his landmark cap, exactly a decade on from becoming Wales’ youngest-ever player at the age of 16 years and 207 days.

History was against Wales with no wins in seven games against Croatia and the visitors were smarting from Thursday’s 1-0 loss to Turkey – their first-ever home defeat in European Championship qualification.

Croatia made three changes from that shock defeat but their midfield triumvirate of Luka Modric, Mateo Kovacic and Marcelo Brozovic – the heartbeat of this ‘Golden Generation’ – remained in tact.

Wales started on the front foot but the pattern of the game soon developed with Croatia dominating possession and the hosts seeking to spring swift counter-attacks.

Wilson almost profited from one such raid after Brooks had tricked Josko Gvardiol in the build-up. The ball just run away from Wilson, who could not connect with enough power and Domagoj Vida blocked.

A period of Croatia keep-ball ended with Josip Juranovic crossing and Petar Musa heading over, but it was a rare moment of concern for Wales who were gaining in confidence.

Ethan Ampadu picked out Brooks after 21 minutes and his feather-like touch and pass freed Wilson through the middle.

Wilson was brought down in full flow by Vida, with the close attendance of Gvardiol preventing the yellow card from turning to red.

Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic tipped away Wilson’s resulting free-kick and was also equal to Neco Williams’ curling effort after the wing-back had cut inside on his right foot,

Gvardiol’s intervention was also needed to deny Connor Roberts after Wilson’s clever back-heel had created space.

Croatia boss Zlatko Dalic made three changes at half-time, a sign that he was unimpressed with his side’s first-half performance.

But Wales struck within two minutes of the restart as the visitors failed to cope with Danny Ward’s punt forward.

The ball came off a Croatia player under pressure from Moore and Brooks volleyed the ball on.

Wilson took it in his stride and outpaced Vida to chip the ball over the stranded Livakovic for his seventh Wales goal.

The lead was doubled after 60 minutes as Daniel James, having replaced Brooks three minutes earlier, swung over a cross that Wilson glanced beyond Livakovic into the corner of the net.

Croatia rose from their slumber with Ward saving from substitute Dion Drena Beljo, the ball turned inches around the post.

Modric’s resulting corner glanced off the head of Moore for Pasalic to pounce from close range, but Wales held on for a famous victory against the world’s sixth-ranked team.

Scotland have qualified for Euro 2024 after Norway were beaten 1-0 by Spain in Oslo.

The result meant Steve Clarke’s men were guaranteed a top-two finish in Group A with two games to spare.

A Norway victory would have meant Scotland needed a point from their remaining matches, in Georgia and at home to Norway, next month.

But a second-half goal from Spain’s Gavi meant the Scots were mathematically certain to be at next year’s championships in Germany.

Spain, who beat Scotland 2-0 in Seville on Thursday to avenge their defeat by the same scoreline at Hampden Park in March, also made sure of their qualification a they moved top the group on goal difference.

They have two matches remaining, against minnows Cyprus and Georgia.

Justin Fields injured his right hand in the Chicago Bears' 19-13 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

The dual-threat quarterback, who was coming off two of the best games of his NFL career, was hurt on a third-down play with about 10 minutes to go in the third quarter when he was sacked by Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter.

He appeared to land on his throwing hand, and was examined on the sideline before going to the locker room. 

The Bears initially listed him as questionable to return before declaring him out a few minutes later.

Tyson Bagent entered on the Bears' next possession to replace Fields and on the third play of his NFL career, the undrafted rookie fumbled while being sacked by Josh Metellus. Minnesota's Jordan Hicks picked up the ball and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown.

The 23-year-old Bagent was later able to lead the Bears on a 77-yard touchdown drive to cut the Vikings' lead to six, but on Chicago's next possession he threw a costly interception with just over 2 minutes remaining.

He finished 10 of 14 for 83 yards with the one pick as the Bears dropped to 1-5. 

Fields was 6 for 10 for 58 yards with an interception and was sacked four times. He also rushed for 46 yards on eight attempts.

The third-year quarterback was coming off back-to-back four-touchdown games, throwing for a combined 617 yards.