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Fifa World Cup qualifier: Portugal v Republic of Ireland

Venue: Estadio Jose Alvalade, Lisbon Date: Saturday, 11 October Kick-off: 19:45 BST

It has been a glorious 2025 for Portugal and Paris St-Germain midfielder Vitinha.

The 25-year-old was integral for his club side as they won a treble including a maiden Champions League title.

He then helped Portugal win the Nations League, scoring in the shootout as they beat Spain on penalties in the final.

To cap off a successful spells, he was voted as the third best player in the world behind Ousmane Dembele and Lamine Yamal at the Ballon d’Or ceremony.

Vitinha is now regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world and he is expected to be part of Portugal’s line-up for Saturday’s World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland.

Vitinha joined the Porto academy in 2011 and rose through the ranks to the first team, making his debut in January 2020 against Gil Vicente.

He would make seven further appearances that season as Porto won the Primeira Liga, but with the club under financial pressure, the then 20-year-old joined Wolves on a season-long loan with an option to buy for £17m.

When announcing the signing that summer, Wolves executive chairman Jeff Shi said that Vitinha was “a crucial signing”.

Nuno Barbosa, a Portuguese journalist for Jornal de Noticias, told the club website that “it’s impossible to watch him play and him not remind you of Joao Moutinho”.

Vitinha’s transition to English football was made difficult by the Covid-19 pandemic.

With fellow Portuguese midfielders Moutinho and Ruben Neves in front of him too, he struggled to establish himself at Molineux and when he did feature, he was often played out of position.

He made his debut as a substitute away to Sheffield United on 14 September, but his full Premier League debut would not arrive until 29 December against Manchester United.

He registered just 22 appearances for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side and his most memorable moment came in an EFL Cup game against non-league Chorley Town when he scored his only goal for the club with a terrific 35-yard winner.

At the end of the season, with Bruno Lange replacing Nuno, Wolves decided against signing him permanently, as whilst his technical ability was clear to see, he struggled to adapt to the intensity of the Premier League.

While he started the following season on the bench for Porto, as the campaign went on, Vitinha’s role in Sergio Conceicao’s team grew steadily as he consolidated his place in his preferred deep lying midfield role.

He made 47 appearances for the club as they won the Primeira Liga and the Taca de Portugal, with Vitinha scoring in the final of the cup.

He was named in the Primeira Liga Team of the Year and the Primeira Liga Best Young Player of the Year.

Vitinha’s form was rewarded with a maiden senior Portugal call-up in March 2022.

The 2021-22 campaign was one of redemption and one in which Vitinha established himself as an exciting young talent, which inevitably attracted the attention of big clubs in Europe.

The first year in France proved difficult.

While he made 48 appearances in all competitions as PSG won Ligue 1, Christophe Galtier’s top-heavy team, built around Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, did not suit the diminutive midfielder, who had to do more defensive work.

There were even reports of a training ground altercation with Messi, which Vitinha vehemently denied, but things were soon on the up once Luis Enrique took over in the summer of 2023.

With Messi and Neymar having moved on, Enrique opted for a more holistic approach and a possession-based system.

That allowed Vitinha to flourish, as he was named in the Champions League and Ligue 1 Team of the Season as the Parisians won a domestic treble and he then featured for Portugal at the 2024 Euros.

Vitinha’s third season is when he truly became PSG’s midfield maestro however, dictating the tempo of games and starting attacks with his superb passing range.

He completed more passes than any other player in PSG’s successful Champions League run.

Luis Enrique, the manager who was integral to unlocking Vitinha’s full potential, said earlier this year that Vitinha “embodies the perfect midfielder”.

That was a view shared by those who voted in the Ballon d’Or, as Vitinha came in third behind Barcelona’s Yamal and teammate Dembele.

On the international stage too, Vitinha’s stature has steadily grown.

He has won 31 caps and is a consistent figure in midfield in a stacked Portugal squad who will have their eyes on challenging for the World Cup next year.

They sit top of their qualifying group with maximum points from their first two games ahead of home fixtures against Republic of Ireland and Hungary this month.

World Cup qualifying: Northern Ireland v Slovakia

Venue: Windsor Park, Belfast Date: Friday, 10 October Time: 19:45 BST

It was 10 years ago this week that Northern Ireland beat Greece to seal qualification for Euro 2016 and what was then their first major finals in three decades.

The 3-1 win over the Euro 2004 champions on 8 October 2015 was inarguably one of Windsor Park’s most memorable nights.

The stakes were similarly sky-high in play-off matches away to Switzerland and home to Slovakia in the campaigns that followed, albeit the results on those occasions did not go Northern Ireland’s way.

Such is the youthful nature of a Northern Ireland squad still rebuilding after the retirements of stalwarts such as Jonny Evans, Steven Davis and Stuart Dallas in recent years, for many it will simply be the biggest game of their international careers to date.

Of the 27-man panel named by manager Michael O’Neill to face Slovakai and then Germany three days later, only Bailey Peacock-Farrell, George Saville and Euro 2016 veterans Josh Magennis and Paddy McNair played in that play-off five years ago, while Daniel Ballard, Conor Hazard and Ali McCann were unused substitutes.

This is an almost wholly new Northern Ireland team leading Dallas to write in his BBC Sport NI column this week that he did not “think memories of that game will be a factor” come Friday night.

Perhaps that is a double-edged sword. While players are not burdened by any past failures on a similar stage, few in the squad have experienced an international fixture of such consequence.

Their two past qualification campaigns were practically over before they started and, while they did go to Luxembourg needing a point to secure top spot in their Nations League group in November, the stakes here are hardly comparable

Liverpool’s Conor Bradley spoke on Wednesday about the need to “manage the expectations” of a sold-out Windsor Park crowd, but added that he felt the side were “better prepared” now for such fixtures.

Isaac Price, meanwhile, talked of what he sees as the benefit of “confidence and some arrogance” among the young panel going into such a pivotal game.

When the qualifying draw was made in December, there was an understandable assumption that Germany would top the group and seal automatic qualification with Northern Ireland, Slovakia and Luxembourg fighting among themselves for the play-off spot afforded to the runner-up.

Slovakia’s victory over the four-time World Cup winners to kick things off last month has instead opened up myriad possibilities.

Friday night’s visitors to Windsor Park, who followed up their shock result against the Germans with late victory in Luxembourg, know that another three points in Belfast would be a huge step towards booking their place at next summer’s World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

While the side ranked 42nd in the world did not make the tournament in 2022, they reached the European Championships either side and were beaten by England at the last-16 stage in 2024 only after Jude Bellingham’s spectacular 96th-minute overhead kick.

Manager Francesco Calzona is the first foreign boss in the country’s history and came recommended by Slovakian legend Marek Hamsik from their time together at Napoli, where the Italian was an assistant coach.

Ties to the Serie A champions do not stop there with midfielder Stanislav Lobotka the side’s key player. The 30-year-old, however, has emerged as a major injury doubt for the game on Friday.

Another with recent Champions League experience, Atletico Madrid full back David Hancko, is another who could miss out.

While O’Neill said he would not believe their absences until the pair were missing when the anthems are played at Windsor Park, should Slovakia be without both then Middlesbrough striker David Strelec will be expected to carry a greater load.

In their own right, Northern Ireland come into the game buoyed by seeing five players feature in the same Premier League weekend for the first time in five years.

Striker Callum Marshall’s West Ham debut from the bench against Arsenal at the Emirates on Saturday saw him join Liverpool’s Bradley, Crystal Palace’s Justin Devenny and Sunderland duo Trai Hume and Daniel Ballard in featuring in the top flight this season.

Without a defeat in their past six games at Windsor Park, and having conceded just one goal during that run, the hosts can expect home advantage to be a factor too.

“We know that any success we have will have to be built here in Belfast,” said O’Neill.

“The key in any qualification game is to take maximum points in your home games or take as close to maximum points in your home games. Home form is imperative for progression.”

Earlier this week former England and Manchester United footballer Gary Neville posted a video to social media, criticising what he called “negative” use of the British flag.

In recent months, people in some communities have hung Union Jack and St George’s cross flags from lampposts, including Salford – where Neville is a part-owner of the local football club.

Neville said he had seen 50 to 60 while driving to the club’s stadium along nearby Littleton Road, and that he had ordered a flag to be removed from a building site he has invested in, because of his belief that the intent of those flying the flags is to sow division at a time when immigration is a major political issue.

“I love my country, I love Manchester, I love England,” Neville said. “But I’ve been building in this city for 15-20 years and nobody has put a Union Jack flag up, so why do you need to put one up now?

“Quite clearly, it’s sending a message to everybody that there’s something you don’t like.”

Neville doubted whether flags are a true representation of patriotism.

“I just kept thinking as I was driving home that we’re all being turned on each other. And the division that’s being created is absolutely disgusting. Mainly created by angry, middle-aged white men, who know exactly what they’re doing.”

Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch called Neville’s comments “disgraceful”, while Reform UK leader Nigel Farage – who earlier this year compared the UK to North Korea when asked about free speech by a US Congressional committee – called Neville “detached from reality” and said he was “amazed” Neville has kept his job as a pundit with Sky Sports.

On Wednesday evening protesters unfurled a banner calling Neville “traitor scum” outside Hotel Football, the business he part owns which is located next to Old Trafford.

On Littleton Road, on the approach to Salford City’s Peninsula Stadium, dozens of Union Jacks have been zip tied to lampposts in recent months.

“It’s representing the United Kingdom isn’t it?”, says Andy, 43, who lives on the road. “Neville has got a bit of a point [about negative uses], but we should be able to put the flag up when we want.”

It takes about 20 minutes to walk the length of Littleton Road, and then another 30 or so to reach Salford Shopping Centre. The whole stretch is full of newly affixed flags on both sides of the road.

“I don’t mind the flags being put up, but I think it’s got to be for a reason which is peaceful,” says 68-year-old former NHS worker Adrian. “It’s got to acknowledge support for the United Kingdom, with no wicked intent against other individuals or groups.”

For some, the fact that flag flying in urban areas has become much more common at a time when anti-immigration sentiment and marches have increased means the intent is inherently suspicious.

“I’m a Man City fan, but I agree with Gary Neville!”, says Mark, 43. “Some people genuinely are trying to show their national pride, but there are also people with more nefarious reasons doing it. I’m proud to be British, but I wouldn’t be flying a flag right now because of the negative connotation. It seems to have been hijacked by bigger things at play.”

There are plenty of flags on display outside private homes in the area too, and some are defiant about their individual demonstration of national identity.

“I’ve got one in my garden, and I’m not taking it down for anybody,” says 75-year-old Ken. “I’ve had people knocking and asking me to take it down, but I won’t.”

The context in which people choose to fly the flag was a key theme residents deemed important.

For some of those who have moved to the area from elsewhere, the flags constitute something of an unwelcoming message.

“The Union Jack itself is a national pride thing – every country has the right to be patriotic,” says 21-year-old Norcady, who was raised in Gibraltar and recently moved to Salford. “But there are certain groups making it about political opinions, which I don’t think they should.

“Some of the people who have flags on their houses don’t seem the most welcoming – I’ve gotten a lot of [unpleasant] looks. I think it’s sad if people who are genuinely patriotic about their country won’t be able to use the flag because others are using it in the wrong way.”

A lot of the discussions around flag flying centres on whether or not it is designed to intimidate those from other countries.

“For me, I see no problem with the flag”, says Youssouf, 39, who was born in Somalia before moving to the UK. “It represents the country and it’s a beautiful colour. It’s up to any geezer putting one up what his intentions are.”

Disagreement about what the British flag stands for and how it should be used is not a recent phenomenon.

“From the first flying of the Union Flag in 1606 its meaning has been an issue,” says Nick Groom, author of The Union Jack: The Story of the British Flag. “There are no laws or regulations about flying the flag on land – you can do what you want with it.

“The flag has many multiple contexts that determine how it is understood. There are attempts to politicise it, but it is a flag of the people. It is important that it isn’t turned into a representation of one political faction.

“Events like the 2012 Olympics show how the flag can bring people together – it is a flag of community.”

What every Salford resident the BBC spoke to had in common was that they felt intention is key – those flying a Union Flag out of pride were encouraged to do so, while anybody whose intentions are more aggressive or divisive were criticised.

England legend Wayne Rooney does not think recent squads have a better attitude than his so-called golden generation – and says his team just “didn’t quite manage to get over the line”.

Ex-Three Lions captain Steven Gerrard made headlines this week when he said their lack of success was down to key players being “egotistical losers”.

Gerrard, who played for England 114 times between 2000 and 2014, added “we weren’t a team”.

But Rooney, speaking on his BBC podcast The Wayne Rooney Show, did not quite see it like that.

Rooney played 120 times for England, scoring a then record 53 goals, between 2003 and 2018.

Neither Gerrard nor Rooney ever got to a semi-final with England – but the Three Lions have reached two European Championship finals and a World Cup semi-final since.

“Obviously, we didn’t win anything,” said ex-Manchester United forward Rooney.

“I wouldn’t quite put it that way but I know what he’s saying. There was a lot of big characters in the dressing room.

“I wouldn’t say [England squads now have a] better attitude. That’s disrespectful to us as players because we worked hard, we tried. We didn’t quite manage to do it.

He continued: “What you have now is [rival teams’] players training [together] before they go back to pre-season together – Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford for instance.

“It’s a different generation. The big thing is the media coverage of it is much better. The players get on better with the media. From the outside that gives a better feeling.”

Gerrard, speaking as a guest on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, said several former Manchester United and Liverpool players get on better now as pundits than they ever did as England team-mates.

“I didn’t feel part of a team. I didn’t feel connected with my team-mates, with England,” he said.

In response, Rooney said: “It [was] difficult to have that relationship with Liverpool and Man Utd players. It’s easier now.

“I speak to Steven all the time [now]. You can have better relationships now because you can have a beer together and relax more.

“I was fine with everyone, I got on with everyone. I was aware Becks [David Beckham] and Gary Neville and Scholesy [Paul Scholes], you could see they weren’t going to be close to the Liverpool players.

“But one thing for sure is everyone worked hard for each other. I don’t think that was an issue. We just didn’t manage to get over the line. I didn’t see that at all.”

Rooney, like Gerrard, played in six major tournaments for England but only reached quarter-finals.

But he said the players always “100%” “believed we could win for sure”.

Premier League referee Anthony Taylor has criticised the “expectation of perfection” culture that officials are subject to, and says his family no longer go to his matches because of the abuse he receives.

In an interview with BBC Sport, Taylor speaks publicly for the first time about being targeted by Roma fans as he walked through an airport with his family after the 2023 Europa League final.

The 46-year-old says he is so concerned by attitudes towards referees, there are times he thinks, ‘Is it all worth it?’.

However, he also says being a top-flight official is one of the best jobs in the world.

Taylor has been a Premier League referee for almost 15 years, officiated at the Qatar World Cup in 2022, the last two European Championships and has overseen the finals of both the European Super Cup final and Nations League.

Taylor was confronted by Roma boss Jose Mourinho after his side had lost the 2023 Europa League final on penalties to Sevilla.

The English official showed yellow cards to 13 players during the match, and 25 minutes of added time were played across the full match, including extra time.

Mourinho called Taylor a “disgrace” twice in a post-match news conference before confronting him in a car park – an incident the Portuguese was given a four-match ban for.

Taylor was then shouted at by angry fans as he walked though Budapest Airport with his family.

“That’s the worst situation I’ve dealt with in terms of abuse,” he says.

“Not only because I was travelling with family members at the time, but it also highlights the impact of people’s behaviour on others. Even in a match like that, where there was actually no major mistakes in the game.”

Taylor felt after the match there was an attempt to “shift focus on to somebody to blame”.

He adds: “For me, that’s a great source of disappointment, frustration, anger.

“Why that’s acceptable, I don’t know – because I’m sure those individuals wouldn’t like somebody to turn around and say that to them or their own children.

“It makes you reflect back on whether you made a mistake travelling with your family in the first place. They haven’t been to one [match] since.”

Taylor is not on social media because he does not want to “waste time” reading negative comments or opinions.

Last year the Premier League launched an investigation following online abuse directed at the official.

“If you’re continually told you’re not very good, whether that be by people in the media, by pundits, or even ex-officials, then people’s mental health could potentially suffer,” he says.

“The footballing culture in general is, ‘we need to win this game at all costs’.

“The lengths that people go to post-game with a lot of things now to spread false narratives, to spread malicious conspiracy theories… it creates a hugely negative environment for people to operate in.”

Taylor is also concerned by the treatment of officials in grassroots football.

“Every single weekend you can go to any local park across the UK and you can see a parent on the sideline verbally abusing a young referee,” he says.

“That’s not an environment conducive to people getting better. I don’t understand how people think that’s acceptable.”

Asked whether it is fair for top referees to expect a high level of scrutiny given what can be at stake on the pitch, Taylor says: “I wouldn’t argue against scrutiny being there.”

But he adds: “I’m not saying scrutiny isn’t to be expected, but everybody who watches football always sees a game through the eyes of their team. And the result of a football match and the culmination of a football season is multi-faceted.

“It’s not dependent on one match official’s decision. It’s not dependent on one player missing one penalty in a game. It’s not dependent on one coach making one tactical error during a game.

“The argument one decision has cost somebody the whole season, it’s just factually not true because there’ll be plenty of other incidents in a game or over that season where the results of games have been affected.

“What I’m saying is that you can have scrutiny and you can have critique. But it’s very rarely balanced. Nobody really talks about the positive side of things these days, either.”

The video assistant referee (VAR) system was introduced in the Premier League in 2019.

Taylor believes it has created unrealistic expectations and that those who expected it to create a decision-making “utopia” were “way off the mark”.

“The amount of scrutiny and the amount of analysis and chat around Premier League football means everybody has a quest for perfection,” he says.

“In reality, perfection doesn’t exist. We’re expecting referees to get every decision right. It is really important that we actually start to talk about people being fearful of failure or mistakes.

“We have to accept that if we don’t create the right environment for people to thrive, then people will be fearful, and that will have a negative impact on individuals and performance in the long term. Everybody’s an expert.”

Taylor says VAR has “completely shifted” the level of scrutiny.

“It brought this expectation of perfection that it would solve absolutely everybody’s problems and it would be a utopia,” he adds.

“In reality, those people were way off the mark. One week, people will say: ‘We don’t want VAR to be too forensic.’ The next week they’ll be going: ‘How has VAR not intervened in this?’

“People really need to decide what they want. You can’t one week say, ‘we don’t want to get involved because it ruins the flow of the game’ and the next week turn round and say, ‘this is a disgrace that VAR’s not intervened here’.

Taylor was one of the referees at the Club World Cup in the United States in the summer, when several matches were played in extreme heat.

He says the conditions were on a “completely different level to what you’re normally used to”.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said it was “impossible” to have a normal training session during the tournament while midfielder Enzo Fernandez said he felt “dizzy” while playing in “very dangerous” heat.

“It was absolutely brutal,” Taylor says. “We were really fortunate that we had the opportunity to do some significant preparations before we left the UK using some environmental chamber work.

“The conditions were really challenging.”

Next summer’s World Cup will be held across North America.

Taylor is in his 17th season as a Premier League referee.

“When it comes down to it, it’s one of the best jobs in the world,” he says. “You’re right in the centre of the action in the most exciting league in the world.”

Asked how much longer he may officiate for, Taylor says: “I don’t know, if I’m honest with you.

“I’m 47 next week, so that’s quite old for somebody to be operating at this level, running around after people a lot younger than you.