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.

England head coach Steve Borthwick hailed his players’ composure and resilience after they repelled a thrilling Fiji fightback to book a place in the Rugby World Cup semi-finals.

Fiji tied the game after scoring two converted tries in four second-half minutes, but skipper Owen Farrell kicked a late drop-goal and penalty to see England home 30-24.

“For large parts of the game we controlled it,” Borthwick said.

“There was a spell when Fiji scored back-to-back tries which Fiji can do well, probably better than anyone else in the world, but we stayed composed and got back ahead on the scoreboard.

“The players were written off. A lot of people said we wouldn’t get out of the pool. We got out of the pool, now we got out of the quarter-final.

“Now these players have an opportunity in Paris in the semi-final. I am sure we will be written off again, but these players rise to the occasion.”

Farrell scored 20 points and led from the front on his return as starting fly-half, and Borthwick added: “I think he is a fantastic leader. He is the kind of leader I know I would want to follow on to the pitch.

“I think he is a brilliant player who thrives in the contest, and especially in these big occasions he just gets even better.”

England find themselves one win away from a second successive World Cup final appearance, and while they will start as clear outsiders to progress further next Saturday, Borthwick’s team made it five successive victories in the tournament.

“Today, for large parts we controlled the game and then had a couple of thunderbolts that hit the team in quick succession,” he added.

“I think you’ve seen in a (recent) period of time the England team weren’t coming back to win that game, and this team did.

“We talked about scenarios and how you handle different situations. I think the players are drawing on all of those experiences now.”

England controlled the closing minutes of an enthralling encounter in exemplary fashion as Fiji threatened to complete a recovery act they almost pulled off against Wales last month.

Farrell said: “I thought the team was brilliant in those moments. We managed to wrestle our way back into the game and we got in the right parts of the field.

“We managed to take our chances. Not just that, but we backed it up with a big defensive performance on the back of that.

“There are a lot of good teams left in this competition.

“We have got to have a massive amount of respect for what other teams can do – that is what this stage is like. You saw from Fiji today how much power and skill they had, and they could turn it on in the blink of eye.

“We will prepare the way we have been doing over the past five-six weeks we have been here. We will enjoy getting to a big occasion and a big week, and we will attack it.”

Fiji bowed out, but not before producing further evidence of their game-breaking and try-scoring brilliance that troubled Wales and pushed England – who they beat for the first time ever at Twickenham in August – to the limit in Marseille.

“I think it is just the start of something special,” Fiji head coach Simon Raiwalui said. “They wanted to create a new identity, and I think they have done that.

“I am a bit speechless at the moment. I couldn’t be prouder of the boys.

“We’ve worked so hard from week one – 15 weeks now – and they have shown where we belong on the world stage.”

Footage emerged on social media of fans fighting in the stands at Stade Velodrome after England scored their opening try in the first half.

World Rugby has confirmed that a small number of fans were ejected from the stadium as a result.

Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh praised his players’ fighting spirit, the London crowd and Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou after beating the Tennessee Titans.

The curtain came down on the 2023 London Games on Sunday, when rookie wide receiver Zay Flowers’ first NFL touchdown was complemented by six field goals from the trusted boot of Justin Tucker.

The scoreline should have been far greater than 24-16 but the Ravens’ first ever victory in London and a return to winning ways was all that mattered at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

“A heck of a week capped off by a really great football game,” Harbaugh said. “Appreciate the Titans – that’s a tough, hard-nosed, competitive team, well coached and they played that way today.

“It was an exciting game and we’re very, very pleased to come away with a win and proud of our guys.

“I thought our guys fought through a lot of adversity in that game – some controllable, some not. They managed to find a way to close it at the end.

“I think Lamar Jackson played one of the most courageous games I’ve ever seen. He just continues to do that.

“So many areas that we continue to improve but so many individual efforts.

“We’re glad to be here, the fans were great. I mean, the fans are loud. I love the singing.

“I love that it was a loud stadium, like a home game was. It was like an NFL game there as far as the fans.

“I thought they were very knowledgeable, they know the game over here and that was impressive to see. Just a very impressive crowd.”

Harbaugh is looking forward to getting back to Baltimore and preparing to face the Detroit Lions after spending a beneficial week in London.

The Ravens arrived in the UK on Monday and trained at Tottenham’s base, where the head coach was impressed by Spurs boss Postecoglou.

“I really enjoyed Tottenham when we practiced over there, having a chance to talk with their various staff members,” Harbaugh said.

“The head coach was amazing. I really liked that guy. He’s really good with people, he really understands just how to motivate a team and how to build an organisation.

“He’s done it in different places and I was just to trying to pick his brain as much as I could.

“All the people around him, the performance people were pretty special.

“We got to see the young players. It’s kind of cool seeing the academy.

“That’s different from us. We have the high school and the college. You guys have the academies with the clubs.

“Talking to those kids – they’re kids, yet they’re very talented – so I learned a lot about how small our sporting world really is.”

England captain Jos Buttler told his side to “let it hurt” after their World Cup campaign hit the skids with a shock defeat to Afghanistan.

The defending champions were thrashed by 69 runs in Delhi, dismissed for 215 with almost 10 overs to spare by a team who walked into the contest with a record of 16 defeats from the previous 17 World Cup matches.

That their only previous success came against associates Scotland in 2015 makes the result, and the comfortable margin, even more remarkable.

And while it will go down in Afghan sporting history, England may end up reflecting on the day their title defence ended.

They are not down and out yet, with six group games still to play, but two losses from their first three games mean they must put together a near-perfect run to reach the semi-finals.

Buttler looked drained and drawn by events at the Arun Jaitley Stadium and accepted his side would need to feel some pain before plotting their response.

“It’s really disappointing. We came here today wanting to put in a really good performance and we got outplayed,” he said.

“You’ve got to let these defeats hurt. Let it hurt; then try to figure out where we need to get better.

“It never feels good; you never like losing games of cricket or not performing to the level you want to.

“As a whole, we were not at the level we would like to be in a World Cup. On the field and off it, we will be trying to put it right.

“It’s a big setback. Before the tournament started it’s not how you would have looked at the first three results.

“We’ve got to show a lot of character, a lot of resilience within the team and most of all a lot of belief.”

England have plenty of issues to ponder when they relocate to Mumbai for what now seems a must-win clash against in-form South Africa.

Chris Woakes continued an underwhelming start to the tournament and was awarded just four of his allotted 10 overs after being flogged for 41.

For a player who has so often set England up with new ball discipline, his struggles appear emblematic of a team struggling to reach their own high bar.

Woakes sent down a wide from the first ball of the match, with Buttler nutmegging himself behind the stumps as the ball tricked away to the boundary rope. As a portent of what was to come, it felt apt.

It was also telling that England ended up relying on 24 overs of spin having overlooked Moeen Ali – including a full 10 from Liam Livingstone for the first time in ODI cricket and four from the part-time Joe Root.

“Maybe the conditions didn’t play quite as we thought they would. Obviously throughout our bowling innings, spin was the main threat,” he said.

“Maybe there wasn’t quite as much dew as we thought there was and maybe the pitch didn’t quite play how we thought it would having watched a few games here so far in the tournament.

“But first ball of the day I missed one and it sort of set the tone.”

Former England batter Jonathan Trott, forging a new path now as the Afghanistan head coach, was beaming after landing the biggest scalps of his career.

“It’s always nice. I think I’ll take any victory. I’m very proud of the performance, whether it’s against England or not,” he said.

“I know that the players and the coaching staff deserve it. I’m very keen not to put a dampener on things.

“I never soaked up enough or enjoyed moments like this. I’m certainly going to say to the guys, enjoy tonight and, spend the time together, whatever you want to do.

“If this can bring a smile to people’s faces anywhere in the world, but also encourage boys and girls to pick up a cricket bat or a cricket ball and get playing cricket in Afghanistan, then that’s the sort of the goal that’s been achieved.”

Stephen Kenny will not allow speculation over his future to become a distraction as the Republic of Ireland attempt to end a dismal Euro 2024 qualifying campaign on a positive note.

Ireland face Group B minnows Gibraltar in Faro on Monday evening in their penultimate fixture, having won only one of the six which have preceded it with automatic qualification now beyond them and retaining only a slim chance of reaching the play-offs after Friday night’s 2-0 defeat by Greece.

That has inevitably led to calls for the manager’s head, with the Republic having missed out on the finals of every major tournament since Euro 2016.

However, asked if that noise might prove a distraction, Kenny, who last week received assurances from Football Association of Ireland chief executive Jonathan Hill, said: “No.

“I have to be realistic. Jonathan Hill perfectly clarified it when he said that ‘Stephen would be the manager until the games in November’, and they’ll have a review and assess that.

“At the moment, that’s out of my control. In this camp, it was important to try and win against Greece. We haven’t managed to do that, I understand that, that it’s not a good result for us.

“But from my point of view, I am contracted to the end of the campaign so I just want to finish the campaign strong. If there is a play-off, we can assess that, but finish the campaign strong and take it from there.”

Ireland’s only win so far came against Gibraltar in June, when goals from Mikey Johnston, Evan Ferguson and Adam Idah secured a 3-0 victory which was less comfortable than the scoreline suggests.

Anything other than a repeat against a team which has lost all of its 43 European and World Cup qualifiers to date would represent fresh humiliation for an Ireland side which went down 1-0 at home to Luxembourg in a World Cup qualifier in March 2021.

However for Kenny, even that would do little to quell the tide of discontent which has swamped the positivity he had managed to establish after a shaky start in the job by convincing Ireland fans his new-look team would both excite them and get results.

While they have at times done the former – but sadly, not recently – the have been largely unable to achieve the latter and have the Netherlands awaiting in next month’s final qualifier.

He said: “We all have to get results, we understand that. I came into this camp thinking if we can get six points, we possibly have a chance to take it to Amsterdam, going into the last game.

“We are hugely disappointed – we are, no doubt – to lose the game. What we have to do now is to perform tomorrow and win the game, and take that into November.”

For Ireland’s players, the game represents an opportunity to take out their frustration on one of European football’s smaller nations.

Midfielder Josh Cullen said: “Obviously the campaign hasn’t gone how we wanted it to. As players, the motivation is the same in every game.

“The chance to play for your country is something that should never be taken for granted. Whether that’s against France or Gibraltar, you approach it with the same mindset, and we are itching to get back out there tomorrow night and get a win for our country.”

The Republic of Ireland embark upon a face-saving mission in Faro on Monday evening when they attempt to secure just a second Euro 2024 qualifier victory at the seventh time of asking.

Anything but a comfortable win over Group B minnows Gibraltar, the only team Stephen Kenny’s men have beaten to date during a desperately disappointing campaign, would invite derision with automatic qualification gone and a play-off place an unlikely source of salvation.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at some of the talking points surrounding the game at the Estadio Algarve.

The end is nigh

Stephen Kenny launched his reign as Ireland manager on twin promises to overhaul an ageing squad and play a more exciting brand of football. He has delivered the former and achieved only partial success with the latter. Unfortunately for him, any progress has not been translated into results and as he heads into what seems certain to be his penultimate competitive game, he has won only five of the 27 which have preceded it.

So near, so Faro

While the Republic of Ireland’s last away game against Gibraltar – a 1-0 Euro 2020 qualifier win at the Victoria Stadium in March 2019 – was played on the rock itself, the sides have met previously at the Estadio Algarve. Robbie Keane’s double and goals from Cyrus Christie and Shane Long secured a 4-0 Euro 2016 qualifier victory in September 2015. However, their most recent visit to the stadium in September 2021 had a nasty twist in the tail when Cristiano Ronaldo’s last-gasp double overhauled John Egan’s header to hand Portugal a 2-1 World Cup qualifier win.

Fergie time?

Ireland hope they have found a new talisman for years to come in the shape of 18-year-old Brighton striker Evan Ferguson. The teenager was left painfully isolated for long periods against Greece after hitting the post early on, and he will hope for better service as he attempts to add to his two senior international goals – the last of them against Gibraltar – in seven appearances to date against a significantly more porous defence.

Winging it

Celtic winger Mikey Johnston has not kicked a ball in anger for his club yet this season after being laid low by a back injury during the summer. Kenny threw him on for the last 20 minutes against the Greeks in an effort to add creativity to his labouring side and, while he remains short of match fitness, Monday’s game could be the perfect opportunity for him to launch his season. The Republic lacked inspiration on Friday evening and Johnston provided just that in a second-half cameo in the reverse fixture, in which he scored the opening goal in a 3-0 win.

No points, no goals

In many respects, Ireland could not have chosen a better opponent for a game they simply have to win. Gibraltar have lost their last seven – a run culminating in Wednesday night’s 4-0 friendly defeat in Wales – without scoring and have conceded a total of 17 goals and collected no points in their five Group B fixtures to date. They last found the back of the net in a 1-0 friendly victory over Andorra in November.