It was an unforgettable few days for Troy Parrott, the new hero of the Republic of Ireland, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Italy didn't fare quite as well.
Here, Flashscore looks at the past week's winners and losers.
Winner: Troy Parrott
After Robbie Keane, now it’s Troy Parrott. The legendary Irish striker hung up his boots long ago, and the national team has been searching for a worthy successor who can lead them back to a World Cup finals – something they haven’t managed since 2002.
When Parrott first emerged in Tottenham’s youth ranks – coincidentally, the same club where Keane made his mark – he looked destined to be that successor. But the path of his career, now at 24, delayed a dream that is finally starting to look possible.
Interestingly, the AZ Alkmaar forward had been playing second fiddle to Evan Ferguson, but an injury ruled the Roma player out of the decisive matches and changed the course of Irish football history.
In a week he’ll never forget, Parrott scored both goals in the historic 2-0 win over Portugal and left the pitch to a standing ovation. If anyone still doubted this Dublin-born striker, the match against Hungary changed their minds for good.
A dramatic hat-trick in stoppage time sealed an epic 3-2 victory over Hungary, sparking celebrations across the country. Parrott now has 10 goals for Ireland, half of which have come in the last few days. Can it get any better than this?
Loser: Cristiano Ronaldo
While Parrott’s week will go down in history for all the right reasons, Cristiano Ronaldo’s was quite the opposite.
The Portugal captain is used to making headlines for his achievements, but he missed the crucial World Cup qualifier against Armenia after being sent off against the Republic of Ireland, with Portugal already trailing 2-0.
Despite the Portuguese manager’s explanations after the match and the appeal the FPF will make to FIFA, there’s little that can excuse Ronaldo, who will be 41 at the World Cup but had a moment reminiscent of his teenage years.
On the plus side, it was the first time he’s ever been sent off in 226 appearances for Portugal – and, after all, it’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
Winners: Kosovo
Back to the fairy tales, and we have to mention Kosovo. Outside Europe, stories like Cape Verde or Curacao have made headlines for all the right reasons, but the Kosovar team refuses to give up on making history and are still in the hunt for a place at the 2026 World Cup.
When the draw was made, Kosovo were seen as the underdogs in Group B, especially given the attacking power of teams like Slovenia (Benjamin Sesko) and Sweden (Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak). But this qualifying campaign has shown there are still beautiful stories to be told in European football.
Despite being thrashed 4-0 by Switzerland in the opening round, Kosovo – still not recognised by countries like Serbia, Russia, China and Brazil – took advantage of the lack of quality among their rivals. With five goals scored and 10 points from five matches, they secured a play-off spot with a game to spare after beating Slovenia 2-0.
Mathematically, they could still finish top, but that would require beating Switzerland by six goals. Dreaming is free, but perhaps it’s time to focus on the play-offs. Either way, it’s an incredible achievement.
Losers: Sweden
In this tale of heroes and villains, Sweden were never likely to escape criticism. Graham Potter was brought in to replace Jon Dahl Tomasson with the play-offs in mind, but the Swedes only made it that far thanks to the work of... Jon Dahl Tomasson.
The Nordic side came off a promising Nations League campaign, but qualifying has been a nightmare, and only a win in the final round can prevent them from finishing without a single victory.
Gyokeres and Isak’s pre-season tantrums at their clubs had a negative impact on the team, and the poor form of both strikers was felt collectively – just three goals in five qualifying matches.
Reaching the 2026 World Cup is still possible, but if they play as they did in the 4-1 defeat to Switzerland, it’s time to seriously consider what this Swedish side can achieve in the USA...
Winner: Erling Haaland
War machine, or, freely translated into Norwegian, Erling Haaland. After a season below expectations with Manchester City – where he scored just 22 Premier League goals – the Android took his revenge on the international stage.
In a theoretically easier group, he made the most of the first two rounds back in March, scoring against Moldova and Italy. He added two more in June against the Italians and another against Estonia, putting Norway on course for their first finals appearance since 1998.
With his batteries recharged for the new season, he scored five goals and provided two assists in an 11-1 win over Moldova in September, and hit a hat-trick against Israel in October. In this decisive run-in, Haaland taught Norway to stop worrying about the maths, scoring twice against Estonia before netting two goals in two minutes to turn the game around in Italy and seal a 4-1 win that stunned Milan.
With 16 goals in just eight qualifiers, Haaland looks set to be the unstoppable machine that will shake the world stage in July 2026, having already scored 55 times in 48 international appearances. A goal machine at just 25 years old.
Losers: Hungary
Another team that disappointed in qualifying and let slip an objective that at one point seemed within reach.
Hungary won’t be at the 2026 World Cup, despite going into the final round with a mathematical chance of qualifying directly for the finals.
Of course, Ireland’s win over Portugal wasn’t in the plans for Dominik Szoboslai and company, but a home defeat to the Irish ended their play-off hopes, even though a draw at 90+5’ would have been enough to secure a spot via that alternative route.
A lapse in concentration proved fatal, and Hungary will once again be watching the World Cup on TV – something that’s become all too familiar. The Magyars haven’t reached the World Cup finals since 1986.
Winner: Aurelien Deniel
This feature is already running long, but we couldn’t finish without an honourable mention for Aurelien Deniel, the AG Plouvorn goalkeeper from France’s Regional 1 – the sixth tier – who became a hero in the French Cup in a way rarely seen for someone in his position.
With his team trailing, Deniel was allowed to join his teammates in the opposition box and, with a bicycle kick, equalised the tie in the 90+3rd minute, sending the match to penalties. There, Plouvorn knocked out Vitre, a division above, winning 4-3 thanks to the heroic (and acrobatic) exploits of their goalkeeper.
Losers: Italy
It’s true that Italian success in this last international window was always going to be a tall order. The last-gasp 2-0 win in Moldova kept Gattuso’s side’s hopes alive, but to qualify directly, they needed to beat the (still) unbeaten Norway by nine goals.
Mathematically possible, but in reality... not even in their wildest dreams. They’d have needed to score every 10 minutes, and the match even started close to that pace: Francesco Esposito opened the scoring in the 11th minute, but the momentum faded and Norway equalised in the 63rd. Haaland’s quick-fire double shattered Italian spirits, and Jorgen Strand Larsen added insult to injury in stoppage time, sealing a humiliating 4-1 defeat – Italy’s worst home loss in 40 years.
The Squadra Azzurra, so often brilliant on the European stage, need to roll up their sleeves and show something different in the play-offs to avoid missing out on a third consecutive World Cup finals. After all, in the last two editions, they fell at the play-off stage to Sweden in 2018 and North Macedonia in 2022.
The last time Italy – four-time world champions(!) – played at the big event was in 2014 in Brazil, when Haaland was just 14 years old.
Mamma mia!